out of

/ˈaʊt əv//ˈaʊtə//ˈaʊɾə/

preposition

From the inside to the outside of.

“He ate out of a big bowl.”

Similar
infromofforfresh out ofexterior toexternal to (2, 3)outside of (2, 3)
OriginMiddle English oute of ← Old English ūt of →
First used 5th c.
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Meanings

preposition

alternative colloquial outta

  1. Expressing motion away, literal or figurative; opposed to into.
    1. From the inside to the outside of.First known use 5th c.

      The cat jumped out of the basket.

      1 more example

      The audience came out of the theater.

    2. So as no longer to be in a given condition or state.First known use 10th c.

      They will soon be out of business.

      2 more examples

      I have fallen out of love with you.

      This train will be going out of service at the next station.

    3. informalFrom a thing or place as a source, place of origin etc.First known use 12th c.

      He ate out of a big bowl.

      2 more examples

      Turns out he's some rapper out of New York called Buster Bigmouth.

      Mike Morgillo, a cop out of the Bronx borough command — who is married to a detective — says he's sick of sitting around other cops' backyards hearing the same old he-shot, she-shot stories.

      1997, New York, volume 30, number 31, page 33
    4. nauticalStating the port in which a boat has been registered.

      There's the Titanic out of Liverpool.

    5. Taken from among; expressing a fraction of (a larger number);First known use 15th c.

      Users rated this product a 9 out of 10.

      5 more examples

      Only three out of a thousand are born with this rare disease.

      Out of the entire class, only Cynthia completed the work.

      Only one out of three new students come(s) back.

      Here in Victoria Strait during our second season we were caught in the grip of impenetrable ice floes for 12 out of 40 days at sea.

      1989 May, Jeff MacInnis, “Braving the Northwest Passage”, in National Geographic, volume 175, number 5, page 590

      Out of all men beg for a chance to drill your lots, maybe one in twenty will be oilmen.

      2007 September 27, Paul Thomas Anderson, There Will Be Blood, spoken by Daniel Plainview (Daniel Day-Lewis), distributed by Paramount Vantage & Miramax Films

      Synonyms: in, from, of, for

    6. now chiefly horse breedingBorn from a given mother.First known use 19th c.

      She's a lovely little filly, by Big Lad, out of Damsel in Distress.

  2. Expressing position outside, literal or figurative; opposed to in.
    1. Not within a given space, area etc.First known use 10th c.

      Is your mother out of hospital?

      1 more example

      His feet rested out of the water.

    2. Not in (a given state, condition).First known use 13th c.

      I'm rather out of practice right now.

      1 more example

      He cannot see you because he's feeling out of spirits today.

    3. Without; no longer in possession of.First known use 15th c.

      Sorry, we're out of bread.

      1 more example

      Once out of the farm the approach of poverty would be sure.

      1874, Thomas Hardy, Far from the Madding Crowd, Barnes & Noble, published 2005, page 276
  3. From a given cause or motivation.First known use 13th c.

    I laughed out of embarrassment.

    2 more examples

    She only did it out of love for him.

    She asked the question out of mere curiosity.

  4. From a given material as means of construction.First known use 14th c.

    It's made out of mahogany.

  5. informalIn a manner based in but not always in (a certain place); (loosely) in.

    He works out of the main office.

    3 more examples

    They're out of Tampa and they cover the Southeast.

    This company, based out of England has a full line of magickal products but I can really on^([sic]) comment on their charcoal incense.

    2007, Raven Womack, The Raven's Flight Book of Incense, Oils, Potions and Brews, page 107

    The first major radio networks were based out of New York, and these chains of radio stations would broadcast the same programs that would originate from New York to its subsidiary stations across the nation.

    2015, Alan C. Turley, Urban Culture: Exploring Cities and Cultures, page 81
  6. informaloftenexpression of how distant a person, an event or object is.

    Several yards out of the ocean

    1 more example

    Five months out of the election

  7. To an extreme degree.

    We're gonna blow the crap out of it.

    1 more example

    I could eat the heck out of some spaghetti.

  8. No longer in possession of; having no more of.

    Near-synonym: fresh out of

    1 more example

    Well, we're out of copy paper, so I guess there'll be no printing any printouts today!

    Synonyms: fresh out of

Synonyms & antonyms

prepositionTaken from among; expressing a fraction of (a larger number);

Similar
infromoffor

prepositionNo longer in possession of; having no more of.

Similar
fresh out of

Expressing motion away, literal or figurative; opposed to into.; So as no longer to be in a given condition or state.

Similar
exterior to
Similar
external to (2, 3)outside of (2, 3)

Expressing motion away, literal or figurative; opposed to into.; From a thing or place as a source, place of origin etc.

Similar
without
Also see
from

Origin

  1. Old Englishūt of
  2. Middle Englishoute of
  3. Englishout of

From Middle English oute of, from Old English ūt of.

More words from Middle English, Old English

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Ancient Greek ἐξ, ἐκ
  • ἐξ (ex)1.1. from the inside to the outside of
  • ἐκ (ek)1.1. from the inside to the outside of
Arabic خَارِج, بِدَافِع
  • خَارِج (ḵārij)1.1. from the inside to the outside of
  • بِدَافِع (bi-dāfiʕ)4. From a given cause or motivation
  • خَارِج (ḵārij)1.2. So as no longer to be in a given condition or state; 2.2. Not in (a given state, condition)
Bulgarian от
  • от (ot)1.1. from the inside to the outside of
Czech z, z
  • z1.1. from the inside to the outside of
  • z1.5. expressing a fraction or a ratio
  • z4. From a given cause or motivation
Dutch uit, van de
  • uit1.1. from the inside to the outside of
  • van de1.5. expressing a fraction or a ratio
  • door ... heen2.3. Without; no longer in possession of
  • uit4. From a given cause or motivation
Esperanto ekster, pro
  • ekster2.1. not within a given space
  • pro4. From a given cause or motivation
Finnish ulos, ulkona
  • ulos1.1. from the inside to the outside of
  • ulkona1.1. from the inside to the outside of
French hors de, sur
  • hors de1.1. from the inside to the outside of
  • sur1.5. expressing a fraction or a ratio
  • à court de2.3. Without; no longer in possession of
  • par4. From a given cause or motivation
German aus, von
  • aus1.1. from the inside to the outside of
  • von1.5. expressing a fraction or a ratio
  • aus4. From a given cause or motivation
  • außer1.2. So as no longer to be in a given condition or state; 2.2. Not in (a given state, condition)
Hebrew מתוך
  • מתוך1.1. from the inside to the outside of
Irish as
  • as1.1. from the inside to the outside of
Latin ex, ec
  • ex1.1. from the inside to the outside of
  • ec1.1. from the inside to the outside of
  • e1.1. from the inside to the outside of
  • ex4. From a given cause or motivation
  • e4. From a given cause or motivation
  • ec4. From a given cause or motivation
  • ab4. From a given cause or motivation
  • a4. From a given cause or motivation
Norwegian ut av
  • ut av1.1. from the inside to the outside of
Polish z, ze
  • z1.1. from the inside to the outside of
  • ze1.1. from the inside to the outside of
Portuguese para fora, de
  • para fora1.1. from the inside to the outside of
  • de1.5. expressing a fraction or a ratio
  • de4. From a given cause or motivation
Romanian din, din cauză de
  • din1.1. from the inside to the outside of
  • din cauză de4. From a given cause or motivation
Russian из, из
  • из (iz)1.1. from the inside to the outside of
  • из (iz)1.5. expressing a fraction or a ratio
  • без (bez)2.3. Without; no longer in possession of
  • нет (net)2.3. Without; no longer in possession of
  • руково́дствуясь (rukovódstvujasʹ)4. From a given cause or motivation
  • по причи́не (po pričíne)4. From a given cause or motivation
  • из (iz)4. From a given cause or motivation
  • и́з-за (íz-za)4. From a given cause or motivation
  • за (za)4. From a given cause or motivation
  • всле́дствие (vslédstvije)4. From a given cause or motivation
Spanish de, sin
  • de1.5. expressing a fraction or a ratio
  • sin2.3. Without; no longer in possession of
  • por4. From a given cause or motivation
  • tener su sede central en5. in a manner based in but not always in
  • con sede central en5. in a manner based in but not always in
  • de4. From a given material as means of construction
  • a partir de4. From a given material as means of construction
Swedish ut ur, ute ur
  • ut ur1.1. from the inside to the outside of
  • ute ur1.1. from the inside to the outside of
  • utanför1.1. from the inside to the outside of
Ukrainian з, із
  • з (z)1.1. from the inside to the outside of
  • із (iz)1.1. from the inside to the outside of
  • зі (zi)1.1. from the inside to the outside of
  • вна́слідок (vnáslidok)4. From a given cause or motivation
  • керу́ючись (kerújučysʹ)4. From a given cause or motivation
  • че́рез (čérez)4. From a given cause or motivation

Rhymes & wordplay

Rhymes with out of

outtaflauta
All rhymes →
Cite this entry
APA

out of. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/out%20of

MLA

“out of.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/out%20of. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “out of,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/out%20of.

Source: out of on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.