single out
phrasal verb
singled out; singling out; singles out
: to treat or to speak about (someone or something in a group) in a way that is different from the way one treats or speaks about others
The coach singled out the players who played poorly.
The reviewer singled her performance out for praise/criticism.
—often used as (be) singled outShe was singled out for special treatment.
Examples of single out in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Liverpool’s head coach singled out individual mistakes again for Bournemouth’s second goal of the night.
—
Liam Tharme, New York Times, 17 Aug. 2025
Trump’s tariffs, which could have impacted employment numbers, didn’t single out California, Flores said.
—David Lightman, Sacbee.com, 15 Aug. 2025
Trump singled out New York City; Los Angeles; Baltimore; Chicago and Oakland, California as potential targets in what would be a drastic escalation of federal presence in American cities.
—Nicole Fallert, USA Today, 12 Aug. 2025
Law enforcement agencies, including Catalonia’s police, have singled out Google Pixel devices running GrapheneOS as preferred tools for organized crime due to their strong encryption and anti-forensic features.
—Federico Guerrini, Forbes.com, 10 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for single out
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Liam Tharme, New York Times, 17 Aug. 2025
Trump’s tariffs, which could have impacted employment numbers, didn’t single out California, Flores said.
—David Lightman, Sacbee.com, 15 Aug. 2025
Trump singled out New York City; Los Angeles; Baltimore; Chicago and Oakland, California as potential targets in what would be a drastic escalation of federal presence in American cities.
—Nicole Fallert, USA Today, 12 Aug. 2025
Law enforcement agencies, including Catalonia’s police, have singled out Google Pixel devices running GrapheneOS as preferred tools for organized crime due to their strong encryption and anti-forensic features.
—Federico Guerrini, Forbes.com, 10 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for single out
Cite this Entry
“Single out.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/single%20out. Accessed 29 Aug. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share