shut·out
ˈshət-ˌau̇t 
1
: a game or contest in which one side fails to score
2
: a preemptive bid in bridge
shut out; shutting out; shuts out
1
: exclude
2
: to prevent (an opponent) from scoring in a game or contest
3
: to forestall the bidding of (bridge opponents) by making a high or preemptive bid
Synonyms
Examples of shutout in a Sentence
Noun
They beat us in a 9–0 shutout.
Verb
local residents feel that they have been shut out of the debate for expanding the airport
Recent Examples on the Web
Walter Villa, Miami Herald, 11 Apr. 2024
West Ranch 1, Simi Valley 0: Jackson Banuelos struck out seven in six shutout innings.
—Eric Sondheimer, Los Angeles Times, 10 Apr. 2024
Encinal 25, Mission-San Francisco 0 Three different batters went 3 for 3 at the plate as Encinal shutout Mission and put up 25 runs in a blowout win.
—Nathan Canilao, The Mercury News, 7 Apr. 2024
With a 3-0 shutout of the White Sox on Saturday, the Royals climbed above .500 for the first time since April 2022, mainly due to their starting pitchers’ dominance.
—Shreyas Laddha, Kansas City Star, 7 Apr. 2024
Charlotte had collected four points across its previous two matches, but had trouble getting much clicking in less-than-ideal conditions and suffered its second shutout of the season despite generating six corner kicks.
—Observer Wire Reports, Charlotte Observer, 6 Apr. 2024
Two of his four shutouts this season have been over Detroit.
—Field Level Media, Miami Herald, 30 Mar. 2024
The shutout was the fourth time in Oakland history the A’s were blanked to start the season.
—Cam Inman, The Mercury News, 28 Mar. 2024
The other shutout victories in addition to Arkansas' past two games against Auburn were 10-0 in 1994, 1-0 in 2013, 8-0 in 2019
The Razorbacks improved to 21-6 against Auburn since 2015 and lead the overall series 55-49.
—Bob Holt, arkansasonline.com, 22 Mar. 2024
Chris Morris, Fortune, 6 Apr. 2024
It is shut out, like other things, that come from outdoors: dust, heat and bad news.
—Hazlitt, 3 Apr. 2024
These types of protocols may be untenable for small businesses, shutting out a large pool of potential vendors even for companies with earnest intentions to expand diversity in their supply chain.
—Charlotte Sweeney Obe, Forbes, 29 Mar. 2024
In a game that featured more punts than points, Charlotte was shut out for the first time since 2017 and will be looking to right the ship in Annapolis this time around.
—Hunter Bailey, Charlotte Observer, 29 Feb. 2024
Lopez shut out the Royals on opening day last year.
—Jaylon Thompson, Kansas City Star, 29 Mar. 2024
A lot of it is societal; culturally, women have been shut out of many roles because the traditional interpretation is that such roles are not for them.
—Abiola Salami, Forbes, 28 Mar. 2024
Hollywood has shut out Depp in recent years amid legal troubles and his 2022 libel trial against Amber Heard.
—Zack Sharf, Variety, 26 Mar. 2024
Junior right-hander Tyler Bellerose shut out the Barons for the first four innings of Huntington Beach’s Surf League win at Huntington Beach High.
—Steve Fryer, Orange County Register, 23 Mar. 2024
Noun
That was evident yet again on Thursday night as the host Panthers blanked the Columbus Blue Jackets, 4-0.
Sergei Bobrovsky made 25 saves to earn what became the Panthers’ second straight shutout.
—Walter Villa, Miami Herald, 11 Apr. 2024
West Ranch 1, Simi Valley 0: Jackson Banuelos struck out seven in six shutout innings.
—Eric Sondheimer, Los Angeles Times, 10 Apr. 2024
Encinal 25, Mission-San Francisco 0 Three different batters went 3 for 3 at the plate as Encinal shutout Mission and put up 25 runs in a blowout win.
—Nathan Canilao, The Mercury News, 7 Apr. 2024
With a 3-0 shutout of the White Sox on Saturday, the Royals climbed above .500 for the first time since April 2022, mainly due to their starting pitchers’ dominance.
—Shreyas Laddha, Kansas City Star, 7 Apr. 2024
Charlotte had collected four points across its previous two matches, but had trouble getting much clicking in less-than-ideal conditions and suffered its second shutout of the season despite generating six corner kicks.
—Observer Wire Reports, Charlotte Observer, 6 Apr. 2024
Two of his four shutouts this season have been over Detroit.
—Field Level Media, Miami Herald, 30 Mar. 2024
The shutout was the fourth time in Oakland history the A’s were blanked to start the season.
—Cam Inman, The Mercury News, 28 Mar. 2024
The other shutout victories in addition to Arkansas' past two games against Auburn were 10-0 in 1994, 1-0 in 2013, 8-0 in 2019
The Razorbacks improved to 21-6 against Auburn since 2015 and lead the overall series 55-49.
—Bob Holt, arkansasonline.com, 22 Mar. 2024
Verb
The company is shut out of any streaming rights to the NCAA Tournament.
—Chris Morris, Fortune, 6 Apr. 2024
It is shut out, like other things, that come from outdoors: dust, heat and bad news.
—Hazlitt, 3 Apr. 2024
These types of protocols may be untenable for small businesses, shutting out a large pool of potential vendors even for companies with earnest intentions to expand diversity in their supply chain.
—Charlotte Sweeney Obe, Forbes, 29 Mar. 2024
In a game that featured more punts than points, Charlotte was shut out for the first time since 2017 and will be looking to right the ship in Annapolis this time around.
—Hunter Bailey, Charlotte Observer, 29 Feb. 2024
Lopez shut out the Royals on opening day last year.
—Jaylon Thompson, Kansas City Star, 29 Mar. 2024
A lot of it is societal; culturally, women have been shut out of many roles because the traditional interpretation is that such roles are not for them.
—Abiola Salami, Forbes, 28 Mar. 2024
Hollywood has shut out Depp in recent years amid legal troubles and his 2022 libel trial against Amber Heard.
—Zack Sharf, Variety, 26 Mar. 2024
Junior right-hander Tyler Bellerose shut out the Barons for the first four innings of Huntington Beach’s Surf League win at Huntington Beach High.
—Steve Fryer, Orange County Register, 23 Mar. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'shutout.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near shutout
Cite this Entry
“Shutout.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/shutout. Accessed 16 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
shutout
1 of 2 noun
shut·out
ˈshət-ˌau̇t
: a game in which one side fails to score
shut out
2 of 2 verbˌshət-ˈau̇t
1
: to keep something out : exclude
2
: to keep an opponent from scoring in a game
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