out

UK[aʊt]US[aʊt]

adv

away from the inside or centre of a place; not inside a building

adv

away from your home, especially for a social activity

adv

no longer in the state or position it was in before

adv

no longer involved in a situation, competition, or job

adv

in a loud voice; clearly

adv

(of a fire, light, etc.) no longer burning or shining

adj

not allowed or not possible; not acceptable

adj

(in some sports) no longer valid or in play

prep

from the inside to the outside of something; through to the outside

prep

used to show the reason for something

to make it known that someone is homosexual

to stop something from burning or shining

a way of avoiding something or an excuse

(in baseball) the act of making a player no longer able to bat

Etymology

The word 'out' has a direct lineage from Old English 'ūt', which functioned as an adverb meaning "outwards, outside, away." This Old English term descended from the Proto-Germanic 'ūt-', itself a variant of 'ūt-', meaning "out." The ultimate origin is the Proto-Indo-European root 'ud-', meaning "upwards, up, out, away." This ancient sense of moving from an interior or lower point to an exterior or higher one is the foundational logic of the word. Over centuries, its core spatial meaning broadened into a vast array of abstract and figurative uses, from being excluded ("out of the team") to being revealed ("the secret is out") to being extinguished ("the lights went out"), all retaining the conceptual thread of moving from a state of containment or presence to one of exposure, absence, or conclusion.

Analysis

This is a simplex word of Germanic origin. It functions as a core adverb, preposition, adjective, verb, and noun in Modern English.

Examples

She opened the door and ran out into the garden.

He was voted out of the committee after the scandal.

Please blow out the candles before you leave.