write out

verb

To write at full length or in expanded form.

“Don't use abbreviations; write out words!”

Meanings

verbwrite out (third-person singular simple present writes out, present participle writing out, simple past wrote out, past participle written out)

present singular third person writes out · participle present writing out · past wrote out · participle past written out

  1. transitiveTo write at full length or in expanded form.

    Don't use abbreviations; write out words!

  2. transitiveTo write or fill out (a ticket or citation).
  3. broadlytransitiveTo exclude from a narrative or history.

    Chinese Railroad Workers Were Almost Written Out of History.

    2019 May 14, Karen Zraick, Chang W. Lee, “Chinese Railroad Workers Were Almost Written Out of History. Now They’re Getting Their Due.”, in The New York Times, →ISSN
    1 more example

    The temperance movement was driven by women, but we let ourselves be written out of that because it gave us a bad name.

    2018 April 11, Zoe Williams, “What's the best way to get written out of history? Be a middle-aged woman”, in The Guardian
  4. broadlytransitivebroadcastingTo remove (a character in a fictional series such as a TV show) by writing the script so as to explain their disappearance (through death, moving away, etc.).

    “Jussie Smollett continues to be a consummate professional on set and as we have previously stated, he is not being written out of the show,” 20th Century Fox Television and Fox Entertainment said in a joint statement released on Wednesday.

    2019 February 20, Sopan Deb, “Fox Stands by Jussie Smollett: ‘He Is Not Being Written Out of the Show’”, in The New York Times, →ISSN
  5. intransitiveTo exhaust one's mental capacity by too much writing.

Synonyms & antonyms

verbput into writing; write in complete form

Similar

verbmake out and issue

Broader

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Translations

Finnish kirjoittaa auki
  • kirjoittaa aukito write at full length
German ausschreiben
  • ausschreibento write at full length
Hungarian kiír
  • kiírto write at full length
Icelandic skrifa óstyttan texta, skrifa fullum stöfum
  • skrifa óstyttan textato write at full length
  • skrifa fullum stöfumto write at full length
  • rita fullu stöfumto write at full length
Italian appuntare, emettere
  • appuntareto write at full length
  • emettereto write at full length
Russian писа́ть по́лностью
  • писа́ть по́лностью (pisátʹ pólnostʹju)to write at full length
Cite this entry
APA

write out. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/write%20out

MLA

“write out.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/write%20out. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “write out,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/write%20out.

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