shut·out
ˈshət-ˌau̇t 
1
: a game or contest in which one side fails to score
2
: a preemptive bid in bridge
shut out; shutting out; shuts out
1
: exclude
2
: to prevent (an opponent) from scoring in a game or contest
3
: to forestall the bidding of (bridge opponents) by making a high or preemptive bid
Examples of shutout in a Sentence
Noun
They beat us in a 9–0 shutout.
Verb
local residents feel that they have been shut out of the debate for expanding the airport
Recent Examples on the Web
Maddie Hartley, Kansas City Star, 10 May 2025
In a word: Yikes. Panthers score on the power play
Defenseman Seth Jones broke up the early shutout bid with a power-play goal from the point.
—Jordan McPherson, Miami Herald, 5 May 2025
Nathan Vinson, People.com, 8 May 2025
My favorite is this highly athletic number where Burr’s long-simmering jealousy and hatred toward Hamilton explodes after he’s shut out of a private dinner where Hamilton, Thomas Jefferson and James Madison will decide where the nation’s capital will be established.
—Pam Kragen, San Diego Union-Tribune, 4 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for shutout
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Noun
Lorenzen threw seven shutout innings, striking out seven.
—Maddie Hartley, Kansas City Star, 10 May 2025
In a word: Yikes. Panthers score on the power play
Defenseman Seth Jones broke up the early shutout bid with a power-play goal from the point.
—Jordan McPherson, Miami Herald, 5 May 2025
Verb
His wife Pauletta says that very ire is a contributing factor to the shut out.
—Nathan Vinson, People.com, 8 May 2025
My favorite is this highly athletic number where Burr’s long-simmering jealousy and hatred toward Hamilton explodes after he’s shut out of a private dinner where Hamilton, Thomas Jefferson and James Madison will decide where the nation’s capital will be established.
—Pam Kragen, San Diego Union-Tribune, 4 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for shutout
Cite this Entry
“Shutout.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/shutout. Accessed 21 May. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
shutout
1 of 2 noun
shut·out
ˈshət-ˌau̇t
: a game in which one side fails to score
shut out
2 of 2 verbˌshət-ˈau̇t
1
: to keep something out : exclude
2
: to keep an opponent from scoring in a game
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