dropout

1 of 2

noun

drop·​out ˈdräp-ˌau̇t 

1

a

: one who drops out of school

b

: one who drops out of conventional society

c

: one who abandons an attempt, activity, or chosen path

a corporate dropout

2

: a momentary defect on a magnetic tape or disk caused by a temporary loss of signal

drop out

2 of 2

verb

ˌdräp-ˈau̇t 

dropped out; dropping out; drops out

intransitive verb

: to withdraw from participation or membership : quit

especially : to withdraw from conventional society

Examples of dropout in a Sentence

Noun

The program is designed for dropouts who wish to get high school equivalency certificates.

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Noah Shinn, a 23-year-old Northeastern University dropout, launched the product to a small test group earlier this year, and his company is already worth billions of dollars. — Lila Shroff, The Atlantic, 13 Sep. 2026

Apart from physical injury, continuous competition without mental downtime frequently leads to early psychological burnout and eventual dropouts. — Michael Swartzon, Miami Herald, 9 Sep. 2026

Verb

By Tuesday afternoon, all of his remaining tour openers — Finneas, Lukas Graham, and Aaron Row — had dropped out of the tour along with Beoga, who played as a backing band for a portion of the set. — Maya Georgi, Rolling Stone, 20 Sep. 2026

This prompted Sheeran’s other openers (and his own backing band) to drop out of the tour in solidarity. — Bethy Squires, Vulture, 20 Sep. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1930, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Verb

1819, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for dropout

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

Kids Definition

dropout

1 of 2 noun

drop·​out ˈdräp-ˌau̇t 

: a person who drops out especially from a school or a training program

drop out

2 of 2 verb

dräp-ˈau̇t 

: to withdraw from taking part or membership : quit

dropped out of school