freeze out

verb

froze out; frozen out; freezing out; freezes out

transitive verb

: exclude

freeze-out

ˈfrēz-ˌau̇t 

noun

Synonyms

• exclude
• ban
• eliminate
• shut out
• bar
• prevent
• rule out

Examples of freeze out in a Sentence

a housing market that effectively freezes out people of moderate means

Recent Examples on the Web

It’s caused millions of these young workers to be frozen out of new opportunities, and men are largely the ones being impacted. —Emma Burleigh, Fortune, 25 Aug. 2025

He had been frozen out in Turin and Anfield has been a slow burn for him. —Phil Hay, New York Times, 20 Aug. 2025

The Swede is still being linked with a $200 million move to Liverpool after refusing to join Newcastle on its pre-season tour of Asia, having also been frozen out by manager Eddie Howe as punishment for his deeds. —Kilty Cleary, MSNBC Newsweek, 16 Aug. 2025

Follow live updates here Alarmed at being frozen out of the talks, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and his government this week turned to European leaders for a lifeline, hoping to influence the high-stakes summit and prevent a potential disaster for Ukraine. —Alexander Smith, NBC news, 15 Aug. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1861, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for freeze out

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

Legal Definition

freezeout

1 of 2 noun

freeze·​out

ˈfrēz-ˌau̇t

: a corporate action (as a merger) taken by those in control of the corporation (as controlling shareholders or the board of directors) for the purpose of causing the minority shareholders to lose their equity in the corporation (as by the sale of their shares) compare squeezeout

freeze out

2 of 2 transitive verb

: to subject to a freezeout