come out

phrasal verb

Formscomes out, coming out, came out, come out

16 meanings of come out

1
move outsidephrasal verbintransitive
To move from inside a place or thing to the outside, especially toward the speaker or to join others.
A small fox came out from under the porch and sniffed the air.
Why don't you come out with us for pizza after the game?
Similaremerge, exit
Oppositeenter
2
be releasedphrasal verbintransitive
To be published, released or made available to the public, or to be broadcast for the first time.
The band's third album came out in the spring and went straight to number one.
A revised edition of the guide will come out later this year.
Similarappear, debut
3
sexualityphrasal verbcolloquialidiomaticintransitive
To reveal openly one's sexual orientation or gender identity, such as being gay or transgender, after keeping it private.
Coming out at work felt riskier to her than telling her parents.
Many people come out to a close friend first and tell their families later.
Note
It is short for come out of the closet, and the shortened form carries its details in two prepositions: to names who was told, as names the identity, so he came out to his parents as gay. Coming out also names the experience itself, which can be a long, deliberate process rather than one announcement, and someone who has made it is simply out.
4
become knownphrasal verbintransitive
To become known or be discovered, often after being hidden or kept quiet.
It later came out that the mayor had known about the problem for months.
Details of the deal began to come out only after the company was sold.
Similaremerge, transpire, leak
5
turn outphrasal verbintransitive
To end up in a particular way or with a particular result.
Despite the rushed schedule, the renovation came out better than anyone had expected.
If the measurements are right, both columns should come out even.
Note
It works as a linking verb, much like turn out: what follows describes the result, either as an adjective (the photos came out fine, the columns come out even) or as an adverb (it all came out well in the end). Its natural subjects are things whose outcome shows only at the end: photographs, a renovation, a sum.
6
appear in skyphrasal verbintransitive
Of the sun, moon or stars, to appear in the sky when the clouds clear away.
By late afternoon the clouds had thinned and the sun came out over the bay.
We waited on the hill for the clouds to clear and the stars to come out.
Similarappear, emerge
7
stain removedphrasal verbintransitive
Of a stain, to be removed from cloth or another surface, usually by washing or cleaning.
Soak the shirt overnight and the coffee stain should come out.
No matter how hard she scrubbed, the paint on the rug would not come out.
8
take a standphrasal verbintransitive
To state one's opinion or position openly, often for or against something.
Several senators came out in support of the bill after the hearing.
Few scientists were willing to come out openly against the proposal.
Note
Speakers usually name the side they take: come out in favor of, in support of, against. A second pattern, come right out and say it, stresses bluntness more than position, as in I came right out and told the boss what I thought of him. There right adds directness, and and joins the verb of speaking that follows.
9
get throughphrasal verbintransitive
To get through and emerge at the end of a period, event or process.
The economy was only just coming out of recession when prices began to rise.
Few teams come out of a losing season like that without replacing the coach.
Similaremerge
10
sourcephrasal verbintransitive
To originate in or arrive from a particular place or source, or to be taken from one, as money from a budget.
The cost of the repairs came out of the school's own budget.
Some of the country's finest writers come out of this small town.

11
career debutphrasal verbintransitive
To make one's first appearance in a new field or role, starting a career or reputation.
He came out as a playwright in his forties, after a long career in law.
Most young architects come out as designers of small homes long before anyone trusts them with a tower.
Similardebut
12
open withphrasal verbintransitive
To start with a particular thing, such as an opening card or move in a game.
The champion came out with an aggressive opening and took control of the board early.
Coaches want their players to come out with energy from the first whistle.
Similarstart (entry), open
13
go on strikephrasal verbintransitive
To go on strike or join a protest, especially in solidarity with other workers.
Within a week, workers at three other plants had come out in solidarity with the strikers.
The union asked its members to come out for one day to protest the pay cuts.
Similarstrike
14
debutantephrasal verbdatedhistoricalintransitive
Of a young woman, to be formally introduced into high society as a debutante.
Daughters of the family traditionally came out at eighteen, with a season of dinners and dances.
The 1958 “coming out” season, where young women were launched into high society, was the last ceremony hosted by the monarch.
2024, Owen Bowcott, “Rose Dugdale obituary”
Similardebut
Note
The debutante's sense belongs to history now, and to period fiction. Young women came out during the coming-out season, a round of formal events that launched them into high society, and the 1958 season was the last hosted by the British monarch. In Letitia Elizabeth Landon's Lady Anne Granard, Lady Anne tells a plain girl she will have "no beauty but that of youth" once she comes out.
15
cricketphrasal verbintransitive
In cricket, of a batsman, to walk onto the field at the start of an innings.
Rain delayed play, and the openers did not come out until after tea.
The crowd rose as the veteran came out for what everyone knew was his final innings.
Note
Cricket's innings means both a team's turn at batting and one batsman's stay at the crease, so the phrase covers the openers walking out at the start of play and each new batsman after a wicket falls. It often takes to bat: he came out to bat at number four.
16
join a churchphrasal verbslangintransitive
To become a member of a church, or to adopt a religion as one's own.
He came out at a revival meeting that summer and was baptized in the river a week later.
The pastor hoped a few of the visitors would come out before the week of services ended.
Similarconvert
Note
Church slang like this needs its setting spelled out. Heard on its own, I came out after a period of difficulty in my life can easily be taken in the "out of the closet" meaning, so a sentence about conversion does best to name the revival meeting, the congregation or the baptism that makes the sense plain.

Practice

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