strikeout

1 of 2

noun

strike·​out ˈstrīk-ˌau̇t 

: an out in baseball resulting from a batter's being charged with three strikes

strike out

2 of 2

verb

struck out; struck out also stricken out; striking out; strikes out

intransitive verb

1

: to enter upon a course of action

struck out on her own after graduating

2

: to set out vigorously

3

: to make an out in baseball by a strikeout

4

: to finish bowling a string with consecutive strikes

specifically : to bowl three strikes in the last frame

5

US, informal : fail sense 2c

6

: to try to hit suddenly

struck out wildly with his arms

—often used with at

struck out at the officers

7

: to remove (something) from a document

struck out a paragraph

transitive verb

of a baseball pitcher : to retire (someone) by a strikeout

Synonyms of strikeout

Verb

• collapse
• fail
• flop
• fold
• struggle
• miss
• fall flat
• fall short
• wash out
• bomb
• come to grief
• lay an egg

Examples of strikeout in a Sentence

Verb

their joint venture in Las Vegas struck out, and they hurriedly dissolved the partnership

struck out all references to indecent matters

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

The lefty, who needed 37 pitches to get through the fourth due to Cabrera’s flub and three free passes, logged five innings, two runs (0 earned), four walks and six strikeouts over 96 pitches. — Gary Phillips, New York Daily News, 29 June 2026

The left-hander increased his strikeout total to 112, third-most in the majors behind Milwaukee ace Jacob Misiorowski (146) and Toronto right-hander Dylan Cease (128). — Los Angeles Times, 28 June 2026

Verb

During the last homestand, the day after the bottom of the order struck out consecutively with the bases loaded in what became a walk-off win against the Baltimore Orioles, Roberts called over Ryan Ward and Alex Freeland in the dugout during batting practice. — Maddie Lee, Los Angeles Times, 28 June 2026

The right-hander went 4 1/3, giving up three hits, walking two and striking out six. — Abbey Mastracco, New York Daily News, 28 June 2026

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1887, in the meaning defined above

Verb

1707, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1

Rhymes for strikeout

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

Kids Definition

strikeout

1 of 2 noun

strike·​out ˈstrī-ˌkau̇t 

: an out in baseball resulting from a batter's being charged with three strikes

strike out

2 of 2 verb

(ˈ)strī-ˈkau̇t

1

: to enter upon a course of action

struck out on my own after graduation

2

: to make an out or cause to make an out in baseball by a strikeout

the shortstop struck out

the pitcher struck him out with a curve