farm out

verb

farmed out; farming out; farms out

transitive verb

1
: to turn over for performance by another usually under contract
farm out a job
2
a
: to put (someone, such as a child) into the hands of another for care
b
: to send (an athlete, such as a baseball player) to a farm team
3
: to exhaust (land) by farming especially by continuously raising one crop

Examples of farm out in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Washington state by far has the most apple orchards, representing 2,335 farms out of 27,463 apple-producing farms nationwide, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture's 2022 Census of Agriculture. Michael Salerno, The Arizona Republic, 25 Sep. 2024 Beyond ramping up production, a European security body will have to assume responsibility for its own research and development—a task that has largely been farmed out to the United States. Phillips P. O’Brien, Foreign Affairs, 6 Sep. 2024 At some point, the hospital decided to farm out the service to Shady Grove Fertility, but the quality of service had been set. Reader Commentary, Baltimore Sun, 5 Aug. 2024 This is a nearly 15% hit rate from only two dairy farms out of more than 170 with bird flu outbreaks in 13 states this year. Amy Maxmen, CNN, 2 Aug. 2024 See all Example Sentences for farm out 

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'farm out.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1593, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of farm out was circa 1593

Dictionary Entries Near farm out

Cite this Entry

“Farm out.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/farm%20out. Accessed 31 Oct. 2024.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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