1
as in to retreat
to hasten away from something dangerous or frightening
the ground soldiers bugged out just before the start of the aerial bombing
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to depart
to leave a place often for another
the strange visitor bugged out without so much as saying a word
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of bug out
Her baby's father answered the door with his eyes bugging out, and Frierson barged in to find two other guys, needles, spoons and powder on the table.
—
Brad Schmitt, The Tennessean, 21 Aug. 2025
The clear lids have a tight seal that locks the temperature in and keeps the fire ants and love bugs out.
—Melanie Fincher, Southern Living, 19 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for bug out
Brad Schmitt, The Tennessean, 21 Aug. 2025
The clear lids have a tight seal that locks the temperature in and keeps the fire ants and love bugs out.
—Melanie Fincher, Southern Living, 19 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for bug out
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bug out
Verb
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Mike Bailey delivered a superkick to Dax Harwood, and Kevin Knight hit Cash Wheeler with a dropkick, sending FTR and Stokely retreating and ending the chaotic confrontation.—
Andrew Ravens,
MSNBC Newsweek,
25 Sep. 2025
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When the sun sets, retreat to the hot tub.—
Erika Owen,
Architectural Digest,
23 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Having left Netflix in August after nearly 14 years at the streamer, Friedlander serves as the successor to Vernon Sanders, who departed as the TV boss earlier in September.—
Selome Hailu,
Variety,
25 Sep. 2025
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Air traffic controllers who handle flights arriving and departing the airport were plagued early this year by multiple communications and radar outages, leading to thousands of cancellations.—
Alexandra Skores,
CNN Money,
25 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Routh allegedly fled the scene but was later arrested by a local sheriff's office on a nearby interstate.—
Peter Charalambous,
ABC News,
23 Sep. 2025
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The suspects fled the scene in multiple vehicles.—
Jim Harrington,
Mercury News,
23 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Star cornerback Jalen Ramsey exited the game with what appears to be a significant hamstring injury.—
James Brizuela,
MSNBC Newsweek,
28 Sep. 2025
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Private equity buyout accounted for 40% of technology exits in the $100 million-$500 million range in Europe, roughly twice the proportion in the US.—
Aman Ghei,
Fortune,
27 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Also, there is no Santa, but Alexia’s gay Jonny is there to trash-talk Todd once more before flying home to Spain.—
Brian Moylan,
Vulture,
26 Sep. 2025
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The weapon can also fly more than 45 miles to strike mobile targets, reducing the amount of time that aircrews spend in harm’s way.—
Prabhat Ranjan Mishra,
Interesting Engineering,
25 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The traffic itself generally keeps moving rather than fully stopping.—
Eric D. Lawrence,
USA Today,
28 Sep. 2025
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Univisión moved the Premios Juventud to Panama and the Latin Grammys to Las Vegas, after hosting the 2024 event here.—
Sarah Moreno,
Miami Herald,
27 Sep. 2025
Verb
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One option, however, is a quick-access safe that can be bolted down.—
Kristen Rogers,
CNN Money,
26 Sep. 2025
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Besides, setting it off while bolted to a fighter jet would have been messy, to say the least.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
24 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Johnson's offense got things going in the second half.—
Matt Audilet,
MSNBC Newsweek,
29 Sep. 2025
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The biggest stage in American entertainment is about to get some serious Latin flavor.—
Kimberly Wilson,
Essence,
29 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Bug out.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bug%20out. Accessed 29 Sep. 2025.
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