readout

1 of 2

noun

read·​out ˈrēd-ˌau̇t 

variants or less commonly read-out

plural readouts also read-outs

1

a

: the process of removing information from an automatic device (such as a computer or sensor) and displaying it in an understandable form

b

: the information removed from such a device and displayed or recorded (as by printing device or electronic screen)

… systems are capable of giving a constant readout of speed and distance traveled to a high degree of accuracy.

—Dutton's Navigation & Piloting

c

: an electronic device that presents information in visual form

The second-best thing is the monitor: It produced extremely crisp, sharp images, and an LED readout on the front provides pertinent information such as the current resolution and refresh rate.

—Preston Gralla

2

: a document that summarizes the content of a meeting, telephone call, etc. involving government officials

Many foreign leaders also issue their own readouts, providing their version of the calls, which can sometimes differ in tone and emphasis from the White House summary.

—Vivian Salama

3

: the radio transmission of data or pictures from a space vehicle

read out

2 of 2

verb

read out; reading out; reads out

transitive verb

1

a

: to read aloud

b

: to produce a readout of

2

: to expel from an organization or group

Examples of readout in a Sentence

Noun

The calculator has a digital readout.

He checked the readout on the screen.

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

With a full tank of fuel, the car’s readout showed 600 miles; however, this rapidly dropped to circa 400 miles during my testing. —Matthew MacConnell, Forbes.com, 4 Aug. 2025

The faster sensor readout allows for higher frame rates using the full width of the sensor (up to 6K60), and beefier processing adds internal N-Raw and ProRes Raw (12-bit), and ProRes 422 (10-bit) encoding, in addition to the H.265 and H2.64 compression options. —PC Magazine, 25 July 2025

Verb

But the most difficult part was the moments before execution, when the person was exposed to the jeers of the crowd, the sight of loved ones, and the sound of their sentence being read out. —The Editors, JSTOR Daily, 31 July 2025

But in a speech read out on July 27 at a commemoration ceremony honoring Korean War veterans in Washington, South Korea's President Lee Jae Myung pledged to further cement the country's alliance with the United States and protect freedom and peace. —Reuters, USA Today, 27 July 2025

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1946, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Verb

1600, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Rhymes for readout

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

Kids Definition

readout

noun

read·​out ˈrēd-ˌau̇t 

: an electronic device that displays information (as data from a calculator)

also : the information displayed