bow out

verb

bowed out; bowing out; bows out

intransitive verb

: retire, withdraw

also : lose

bowed out in the first round of the tournament

Synonyms of bow out

• lose
• fall

Examples of bow out in a Sentence

quite embarrassingly, the top-seeded player bowed out in the first round of competition

Recent Examples on the Web

A day later, Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley, who had bowed out on July 8, reentered the race. — Scott Bauer, Twin Cities, 29 July 2026

Troy Jackson, a veteran state politician and logger, secured the nomination Saturday at the party's state convention which was held weeks after the Democratic nominee Graham Platner bowed out due to mounting scandals. — Hannah Demissie, ABC News, 25 July 2026

One major suitor, UTA, had bowed out of the bidding process as of early June, an insider says. — Erik Hayden, HollywoodReporter, 24 July 2026

Variety understands Odom bowed out after the first act and was replaced by Manaia Glassey-Ohlson. — K.j. Yossman, Variety, 24 July 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1942, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for bow out

• about
• bailout
• blackout
• blowout
• breakout
• burnout
• buyout
• checkout
• closeout
• cutout
• devout
• dropout