tout

1 of 2

verb

ˈtau̇t 

in sense 1 also

ˈtüt 

touted; touting; touts

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

tout

2 of 2

noun

: 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

Synonyms of tout

Verb

• advertise
• announce
• promote
• acclaim

Examples of tout in a Sentence

Verb

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 on the Web

Verb

Doeden, a businessman, touted his record outside of politics and put at least $4 million of his own money into his campaign for governor, according to campaign finance reports cited by the Argus Leader, part of the USA TODAY Network. — Nicole Fallert, USA Today, 29 July 2026

The exhibition, touted as Nara’s first major solo show in New York in nearly a decade, is slated to open October 29 and will run through December 12. — Andy Battaglia, ARTnews.com, 29 July 2026

The platform is touted as a one-stop shop for messaging, getting online government services, making payments and other activities. — Dasha Litvinova, Los Angeles Times, 29 July 2026

Those reports found that as hateful content was increasing on the platform, X ad controls weren’t working to stop big brands’ ads from appearing next to posts touting Hitler and the Nazi Party. — Ashley Belanger, ArsTechnica, 29 July 2026

Word History

Etymology

Verb

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

First Known Use

Verb

circa 1700, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 3

Noun

1853, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing tout

• ticket tout

Rhymes for tout

• bout
• clout
• doubt
• drought
• flout
• gout
• grout
• kraut
• lout
• out
• pout
• rout

Kids Definition

tout

verb

ˈtau̇t, 

ˈtüt

: to make much of : promote