as in raised hell
to behave badly
because his parents spent so much time with his chronically ill sister, the boy resorted to acting out in order to get attention
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Recent Examples of acted out
Advocates say the footage undermines claims that agents acted out of fear for their lives, while federal officials insist an ongoing investigation will clarify what happened.
—
Gabe Whisnant, MSNBC Newsweek, 23 Sep. 2025
Prosecutors argued the brothers acted out of greed, resorting to murder to get their multimillion-dollar inheritances before being cut out of their parents’ will.
—Nancy Dillon, Rolling Stone, 21 Aug. 2025
Gabe Whisnant, MSNBC Newsweek, 23 Sep. 2025
Prosecutors argued the brothers acted out of greed, resorting to murder to get their multimillion-dollar inheritances before being cut out of their parents’ will.
—Nancy Dillon, Rolling Stone, 21 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for acted out
Verb
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When McVie stepped away from the band in 1998, the remaining members, Nicks, Fleetwood, John McVie, and Buckingham, carried on as a quartet.—
Jodi Guglielmi,
Rolling Stone,
20 Sep. 2025
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That method has carried on unchanged through the decades.—
Melinda Salchert,
Southern Living,
19 Sep. 2025
Verb
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As if a 22-year-old with a trans girlfriend never rebelled against their family.—
Brendan Cole,
MSNBC Newsweek,
20 Sep. 2025
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Redford rebelled against his father’s cautiousness and indeed against all expectations, even after the family moved to the more upscale Van Nuys.—
Stephen Galloway,
HollywoodReporter,
16 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Acted out.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/acted%20out. Accessed 29 Sep. 2025.
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