throw out

verb

threw out; thrown out; throwing out; throws out

transitive verb

1

a

: to remove from a place, office, or employment usually in a sudden or unexpected manner

b

: to get rid of as worthless or unnecessary

2

: to give expression to : utter

… threw out a remark … that utterly confounded him.

—Jean Stafford

3

: to dismiss from acceptance or consideration : reject

the testimony was thrown out

4

: to make visible or manifest : display

… the signal was thrown out for the … fleet to prepare for action …

—Archibald Duncan

5

: to leave behind : outdistance

6

: to give forth from within : emit

7

a

: to send out

b

: to cause to project : extend

8

: confuse, disconcert

… automobiles in line blocking the road … threw the whole schedule out.

—Franklin D. Roosevelt

9

: to cause to stand out : make prominent

10

: to make a throw that enables a teammate to put out (a base runner)

see also throw out the baby with the bathwater

Synonyms of throw out

• out
• chase
• eject
• dismiss
• cast out
• kick out
• banish
• run off
• turn out

Examples of throw out in a Sentence

the player was thrown out of the game after assaulting the ref

would you mind if I threw out that leftover pizza that's been in the fridge for two weeks?

Recent Examples on the Web

Advocates say giving parents the ability to throw out embryos with higher risks of conditions like Down Syndrome is unethical, but scientists inched towards this reality this year using gene-editing tools. —O. Rose Broderick, STAT, 2 Jan. 2026

The charges against her were later thrown out by a judge. —Caroline Linton, CBS News, 31 Dec. 2025

Most of them live in severe poverty and bought gifts for every single person of our extended family, which were often not thought out and promptly thrown out or given away. —R. Eric Thomas, Mercury News, 30 Dec. 2025

Non-Essential Mail Digging through a giant pile of envelopes and ads to find those few important bills can be a nightmare, which is why Lichtenstein recommends sorting through and throwing out unnecessary pieces of mail as soon as your daily delivery arrives. —Nishaa Sharma, The Spruce, 29 Dec. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Rhymes for throw out

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

Kids Definition

throw out

verb

1

: to reject or get rid of as worthless or unnecessary : throw away

2

: to remove from a place, position, or participation