bailout

1 of 2

noun

bail·​out ˈbāl-ˌau̇t How to pronounce bailout (audio)
: a rescue from financial distress

bail out

2 of 2

verb

bailed out; bailing out; bails out

intransitive verb

1
: to parachute from an aircraft
2
: to abandon a harmful or difficult situation
also : leave, depart

Examples of bailout in a Sentence

Noun government bailouts of large corporations Verb if the meeting seems like it will never end, find an excuse to bail out the government bailed out the savings and loan industry
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
The People’s Bank of China and the State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE), which manages China’s foreign currency reserves, accounted for more than half of lending in 2021, almost all bailout lending. Reuters, NBC News, 7 Nov. 2023 The retirement plan covering nearly 5,400 Southwest Ohio union carpenters got a nearly $183 million government bailout on Tuesday, according to an announcement by the federal Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation. Alexander Coolidge, The Enquirer, 16 Aug. 2023 The 2007-08 financial crisis was followed by a government bailout and a supervised restructuring of Chrysler and G.M., which forced U.A.W. workers across the Big Three to make major concessions to keep their jobs—and to keep the companies solvent. Dan Kaufman, The New Yorker, 28 Oct. 2023 Investment in real estate fell last year for the first time in a decade, and with no bailout from Beijing in sight, the property downturn is likely to drag on, posing a major threat to China’s growth prospects over the next three to five years. Laura He, CNN, 6 Oct. 2023 Neumann was ousted in late 2019, and after thousands of layoffs and a bailout from WeWork’s biggest investor SoftBank Group Corp., the company named Sandeep Mathrani as CEO in the hope of a turnaround. Time, 9 Aug. 2023 Those losses will doubtless grow, and anyone who thinks Washington won’t give auto makers another bailout should think again. Allysia Finley, WSJ, 29 Oct. 2023 If workers got a raw deal out of the bailout, then so did the planet. Kate Aronoff, The New Republic, 5 Oct. 2023 Yet that may send the message that both borrowers and lenders can continue pursuing incautious practices in the expectation of a bailout. Keith Bradsher, New York Times, 30 Sep. 2023
Verb
Can Kamala Harris bail out Biden with young voters? Laura Blasey, Los Angeles Times, 21 Nov. 2023 Mississippi State was bailed out of giving up a defensive touchdown early in the fourth quarter when receiver Zavion Thomas was ruled to have been in motion for a fourth-and-1 snap from the Bulldogs' 40. Tom Murphy, Arkansas Online, 23 Oct. 2023 After the Great Recession, the government stepped in with $80 billion to bail out General Motors, Chrysler (now owned by Stellantis), and their respective financing arms. Kate Aronoff, The New Republic, 5 Oct. 2023 Rainbow Warriors miss a 34-yarder but bailed out by offsides on Dontae Manning. oregonlive, 16 Sep. 2023 Bateman had three catches for 35 yards Sunday against the Texans, including one diving grab to bail out Lamar Jackson after the quarterback threw late across his body back toward the middle of the field. Brian Wacker, Baltimore Sun, 15 Sep. 2023 In Indianapolis, the branch bailed out 1,000 people — 95% of whom reappeared in court. The Indianapolis Star, 26 July 2023 At the time there was also residual popular anger that taxpayers had to bail out banks that were paying huge sums to their top dealmakers, stoked by the fact that many people lost their jobs and homes in the recession that followed the crisis. Hanna Ziady, CNN, 24 Oct. 2023 Younghoe Koo's third field goal of the game, a 51-yarder as time expired, bailed out Atlanta quarterback Desmond Ridder and gave the mistake-prone, first-place Falcons a 16-13 victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday. Fox News, 22 Oct. 2023 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'bailout.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1939, in the meaning defined above

Verb

1925, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of bailout was in 1925

Dictionary Entries Near bailout

Cite this Entry

“Bailout.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bailout. Accessed 8 Dec. 2023.

Kids Definition

bail out

verb
1
: to jump out of an airplane with a parachute
2
: to help from a difficult situation

Legal Definition

bailout

noun
bail·​out ˈbāl-ˌau̇t How to pronounce bailout (audio)
: a rescue from financial distress

More from Merriam-Webster on bailout

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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