iron out

verb

ironed out; ironing out; irons out

transitive verb

1

: to make smooth or flat by or as if by pressing

2

: to resolve or work out a solution to

ironed out their differences

Examples of iron out in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

While it's often used to buy both sides time to iron out a long-term deal, that's not always the case. — CBS News, 10 Sep. 2026

The absence of Fred VanVleet forced him to iron out some of the biggest weaknesses in his game that aren’t related to his jumper. — Esfandiar Baraheni, New York Times, 9 Sep. 2026

But while the council approved the deal’s framework, more details need to be ironed out. — Chris Higgins, Kansas City Star, 24 Aug. 2026

That included ironing out major differences in inputs for major commercial assessments, and Kaegi’s office’s move to defend its numbers at Board of Review hearings. — A.d. Quig, Chicago Tribune, 24 Aug. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1753, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for iron out

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

Kids Definition

iron out

verb

1

: to make smooth or flat by or as if by ironing

2

: to work out a solution to

ironed out their differences