tout

verb \ ˈtau̇t , in sense 1 also ˈtüt \

Updated on: 19 Apr 2018

Definition of tout

transitive verb

1 : to make much of : promote, talk up

touted as the summer's blockbuster movie

the college's much touted women's studies program

2 : to solicit, peddle, or persuade importunately

not meant to tout you off the movie
—Russell Baker

3 : to spy on : watch

4 a British : to spy out information about (a racing stable, a horse, etc.)

b : to give a tip or solicit bets on (a racehorse)

intransitive verb

1 : to solicit patronage

2 a chiefly British : to spy on racehorses in training to gain information for betting

b : to give a tip or solicit bets on a racehorse

See tout defined for English-language learners

See tout defined for kids

Examples of tout in a Sentence

The company is running advertisements touting the drug's effectiveness.
The company's stock is being touted by many financial advisers.
People were touting tickets outside the stadium.
People were touting outside the stadium.

Recent Examples of tout from the Web

Last year, the unit touted a case study with i360, a marketing firm affiliated with the conservative power brokers Charles and David Koch.

— mark bergen and ben brody, chicagotribune.com, "The spotlight's on Facebook, but Google is also in the privacy hot seat," 16 Apr. 2018
His supporters also tout an internal poll Cox conducted, which shows that barely more half of likely GOP voters in California would turn out in November if there is no Republican gubernatorial candidate on the ballot.

— alexei koseff, sacbee, "California Republicans confront a dire election scenario: No GOP choice for governor | The Sacramento Bee," 16 Apr. 2018
Reps Robert Pittenger and Richard Hudson tout tax cuts at Charlotte Pipe.

— jim morrill, charlotteobserver, "Parade of big-name politicians visiting for NC congressman. Will they deliver votes? | Charlotte Observer," 16 Apr. 2018
But Thursday, Ducey touted a plan that would give teachers a 20 percent raise by 2020.

— richard ruelas, azcentral, "Teacher salaries: What we know about how Gov. Doug Ducey will pay for a 20 percent raise," 13 Apr. 2018
During the hearings, Zuckerberg touted changes the company is already making to enhance privacy and transparency.

— katy steinmetz, Time, "Congress Never Wanted to Regulate Facebook. Until Now," 12 Apr. 2018
The officials touted economic growth and expansion at the conference, which was held in Sugar Land.

— nancy sarnoff, Houston Chronicle, "Houston's suburban cities tout growth and lament challenges," 12 Apr. 2018
In a recent New England Journal of Medicine report, NIH Director Francis Collins and Volkow touted two other kinds of therapies currently used to treat respiratory depression that might someday be adapted to help respond to overdoses.

— max blau, STAT, "The next naloxone? Companies, academics search for better overdose-reversal drugs," 10 Apr. 2018
Nationally, the signs would tout the percentage of their fuel made with oil pumped in the United States.

— peggy fikac, San Antonio Express-News, "Gov. Abbott says he’ll face Valdez, but White hopes to prove him wrong," 8 Apr. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'tout.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of tout

Middle English tuten to protrude, peer; probably akin to Old English tōtian to stick out, Norwegian tyte

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: circa 1700

in the meaning defined at transitive sense 3

See Words from the same year

tout Synonyms

Phrases

doff one's hat to (or doff one's cap to);

tout

noun

Definition of tout

: one who touts: such as

a : one who solicits patronage

b chiefly British : one who spies out racing information for betting purposes

c : one who gives tips or solicits bets on a racehorse

See tout defined for English-language learners

Recent Examples of tout from the Web

Today, listings from one coast to another tout Bitcoin as a way to make a property transaction.

— andrew zaleski, Curbed, "Bitcoin’s young investors put their digital currency to work in the physical world," 21 Mar. 2018
Here’s my French version: Chez eux, ils ont tout en double.

— douglas hofstadter, The Atlantic, "The Shallowness of Google Translate," 30 Jan. 2018
She and a host of other Venezuelans - army deserters, laborers, nurses - arrived to a barrage of offers from touts peddling trips on rickety buses to cities such as Quito, Lima and Santiago.

— anthony faiola, chicagotribune.com, "Venezuelans are fleeing their crisis-torn country en masse," 3 Mar. 2018
Lowe's touts that almost 40% of its seasonal workers move into permanent part-time and full time jobs in 2017.

— charisse jones, USA TODAY, "Home Depot, Lowe's embark on spring hiring sprees as labor market stiffens," 14 Feb. 2018
Wochit Lots of advertisements on TV tout all sorts of strategies for sustaining memory and brain power as you age.

— bryant stamford, The Courier-Journal, "Do puzzles, games and supplements keep older brains sharp? Yes - but it's not enough," 1 Feb. 2018
The Guardian reports that one area investigators are specifically looking into is whether industrial scale touts receive special benefits from secondary ticketing services.

— richard smirke, Billboard, "StubHub, Viagogo Offices Raided By U.K. Authorities in Secondary Ticketing Probe," 10 Nov. 2017
Conversely, what tout of yours proved to be a swing and a miss?

— michael beller, SI.com, "Week 15 Fantasy Football Cheat Sheet," 16 Dec. 2017
There are now calls for a criminal investigation into Lavallée’s operations, as well as the wider relationship between ticket resale companies and touts.

— richard smirke, Billboard, "StubHub, Viagogo Offices Raided By U.K. Authorities in Secondary Ticketing Probe," 10 Nov. 2017

First Known Use of tout

1853

in the meaning defined above

See Words from the same year

NEW! Time Traveler

TOUT Defined for English Language Learners

tout

verb

Definition of tout for English Language Learners

: to talk about (something or someone) as being very good, effective, skillful, etc.
: to try to persuade people to buy your goods or services
: to buy tickets for an event and resell them at a much higher price

tout

noun

Definition of tout for English Language Learners

: a person who sells information about which horses are likely to win the races at a racetrack
: a person who buys tickets for an event and resells them at a much higher price