cancel out

phrasal verb

canceled out or cancelled out; canceling out or cancelling out; cancels out

: to reduce the effect of (something) : to be equal to (something) in force or importance but have an opposite effect

The costs cancel out the benefits.

Examples of cancel out in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The belief these teams have cancels out Monday; both sides go into this thing feeling superhuman. —The Athletic College Basketball Staff, New York Times, 7 Apr. 2025

Both concerns have some merit, but neither cancels out the undeniable fact that the United States is flush with millionaires. —Wes Moss, Forbes.com, 3 Apr. 2025

But this force redistributes the electrons, generating another field that exactly cancels out the effect of the original one. —The Physics Arxiv Blog, Discover Magazine, 24 Mar. 2025

This technology uses tiny microphones on the inside and outside of the ear cups to create sound waves in frequencies that cancel out the background noise around you. —Clint Davis, People.com, 23 Mar. 2025

Rhymes for cancel out

• roundabout
• runabout
• sauerkraut
• thereabout
• turnabout
• about
• bailout
• blackout
• blowout
• breakout
• burnout
• buyout