count out

verb

counted out; counting out; counts out

transitive verb

1

: to not include (someone) in an activity

If you are looking for people to help you clean the house today, count me out.

2

: to decide that (someone or something) cannot win or succeed

Don't count out our team just yet. They could still win.

3

: to count (a certain number of items to be separated from a quantity one is holding)

He counted out ten tickets and handed them to her.

4

: to signal the knockout of (a boxer who is down) by completing an audible count of 10 seconds before the boxer rises

Examples of count out in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

While breaking will not return for the 2028 Los Angeles games, there is hope among dancers, artists, and fans alike that it is not counted out permanently. —Demicia Inman, VIBE.com, 18 June 2025

Investors also can't count out an unexpected twist — either positive or negative — coming from the White House. —Jesse Pound, CNBC, 9 June 2025

More Photo by Matthew Stockman/Getty Images While many have counted out the Pacers, the Thunder aren't one of them. —Matt Levine, MSNBC Newsweek, 7 June 2025

And no one is counting out the Braves, who won the division six years in a row from 2018-23. —Peter Sblendorio, New York Daily News, 7 Apr. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1854, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for count out

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