zone out

1. Stop paying attention, dissociate oneself from a situation. Also, engage in a mindless activity. For example, When Felicia starts talking about her ailments and her friends' ailments, I totally zone out. This idiom also occurs in the passive, be zoned out. It originally alluded to narcotic intoxication and then was broadened to other kinds of dissociation. For a near synonym, see tune out, def. 2. [Slang; second half of 1900s]

Example Sentences

After a few minutes, she would zone out, and he would lose patience.

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He tries to zone out when it does.

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"I've spent most of my adult life in transit, and it's a beautiful record for zoning out the outside world," he says.

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Unlike at the first trial, when Gordon would often sit looking zoned out with his eyes half shut, now he appeared emboldened.

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Knight said her favourite place in the city "just to zone out and just chill out" was Bantock Park.

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Related Words

• lose consciousness www.thesaurus.com
• pass out