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

Some have said the Board of Peace will cancel out the United Nations’s functions, raising concerns among potential member nations. —Ashleigh Fields, The Hill, 22 Jan. 2026

Pinvonka added that campus events scheduled for Monday evening had been canceled out of respect for the deceased. —David Chiu, PEOPLE, 21 Jan. 2026

Spurs have not lived up to expectations in the Dane’s first season in charge, and his side looked to have secured a point after Cristian Romero’s bullet header cancelled out Crysencio Summerville’s deflected first-half goal. —Jack Pitt-Brooke, New York Times, 17 Jan. 2026

Mixing cleaners improperly could create dangerous chemical gases or cancel out their cleaning properties. —Mary Marlowe Leverette, The Spruce, 13 Jan. 2026

Rhymes for cancel out

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