out of shape

idiom

1
: not in the usual shape
The bike's rim was all out of shape.
: so as not to be in the usual shape
The wire cage was all twisted out of shape.
2
: not in a physically strong and healthy condition
out of shape from lack of exercise

Examples of out of shape in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web The siblings kidded Chris about being out of shape. Jonathan Abrams, New York Times, 20 June 2023 All of our favorite hats are easy to pack, and don't get bent completely out of shape from being squashed into a suitcase or a backpack. Anna Lane, USA TODAY, 19 May 2021 One episode climaxes with an act of violence on a scale that would completely upend life in the city for quite some time, yet it’s treated as an event that only relates to the Touched and the people who are bent out of shape about them. Alan Sepinwall, Rolling Stone, 5 Apr. 2021 Bernardo’s run down the right of the box pulled Inter defense out of shape. James Robson, BostonGlobe.com, 10 June 2023 Killingsworth started all 31 games in his one IU season and led the Hoosiers in scoring and rebounding, but he was often exposed defensively and looked out of shape at times. Matthew Glenesk, The Indianapolis Star, 5 June 2023 In those cases, slow and careful exercise through a rehabilitation or physical therapy program might help repair energy systems that have fallen out of shape. Rachel Cohrs and Betsy Ladyzhets, STAT, 20 Apr. 2023 More questions popped up when Carter showed up for Georgia’s pro day out of shape. Brad Biggs, Chicago Tribune, 12 Apr. 2023 Many of our emotion terms are references to states of the body—we’re downcast, bent out of shape, head over heels, shaken up, down in the mouth—which have slowly rigidified into dead metaphor. Nikhil Krishnan, The New Yorker, 1 Aug. 2022

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

Dictionary Entries Near out of shape

Cite this Entry

“Out of shape.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/out%20of%20shape. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

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