work out
Britishverb
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(tr) to achieve or accomplish by effort
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(tr) to solve or find out by reasoning or calculation
to work out an answer
to work out a sum
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(tr) to devise or formulate
to work out a plan
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(intr) to prove satisfactory or effective
did your plan work out?
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(intr) to happen as specified
it all worked out well
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(intr) to take part in physical exercise, as in training
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(tr) to remove all the mineral in (a mine, body of ore, etc) that can be profitably exploited
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(intr; often foll by to or at) to reach a total
your bill works out at a pound
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informal (tr) to understand the real nature of
I shall never work you out
noun
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Accomplish by work or effort, as in I think we can work out a solution to this problem . [1500s] For work out all right , see turn out all right .
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Find a solution for, solve, as in They hoped to work out their personal differences , or Can you help me work out this equation? [Mid-1800s]
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Formulate or develop, as in We were told to work out a new plan , or He's very good at working out complicated plots . [Early 1800s]
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Discharge a debt by working instead of paying money, as in She promised she'd work out the rest of the rent by baby-sitting for them . [Second half of 1600s]
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Prove effective or successful, as in I wonder if their marriage will work out .
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Have a specific result, add up, as in It worked out that she was able to go to the party after all , or The total works out to more than a million . [Late 1800s]
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Engage in strenuous exercise for physical conditioning, as in He works out with weights every other day . [1920s]
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Exhaust a resource, such as a mine, as in This mine has been completely worked out . [Mid-1500s]
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Academics say they cannot work out why “momentum” as a so-called “factor” keeps working.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 22, 2026
Unfortunately, it might not work out so well for them if that happens.
From Salon ● Jul. 21, 2026
"There is dialogue. I believe everything will work out," he added.
From Barron's ● Jul. 18, 2026
He came on as a half-time substitute against Norway but things didn't work out.
From BBC ● Jul. 18, 2026
One might wonder why the Athenians and the Spartans did not sit down over a nice cup of tea and work out their differences, but they did not.
From "The Hidden Gallery" by Maryrose Wood
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
