as in escape
the act or a means of getting or keeping away from something undesirable
I think that saying you're sick is just a cop-out to get out of going to work
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in to back out
to break a promise or agreement
don't cop out on your promise to pay for the damage
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of cop-out
Megan Feringa, New York Times, 27 July 2025
Bloy’s answer to Variety’s question is both understandable and a total cop-out.
—Nicholas Quah, Vulture, 15 July 2025
And yet there’s hardly an ounce of violence on screen, which feels like both a cop-out and, in some ways, an accomplishment.
—Jordan Mintzer, HollywoodReporter, 8 July 2025
This is a bit of a cop-out, but there’s not much drama in the room unless injury hits.
—Parker Gabriel, Denver Post, 7 July 2025
Ultimately, the labor export program shouldn’t be seen as a cop-out by the government but rather as a single element of a much larger jobs plan that ought to prioritize opportunities in the country.
—Martin K.n Siele, semafor.com, 20 June 2025
Such a cop-out is the underlying, depressing reality with all of these remakes: No change can be too daring, no update too significant.
—David Sims, The Atlantic, 13 June 2025
Many would have to raise their taxes as most do not allow for deficit spending (for the federal government, the optimal cop-out).
—Gary Franks, Hartford Courant, 6 June 2025
Of course, there will always be times when a company catches you by surprise and lists your name along with other underperforming employees in a cop-out to cover their atrocious layoffs.
—Rachel Wells, Forbes.com, 5 May 2025
Shomik Mukherjee, Mercury News, 8 Aug. 2025
But with that brief wave of hope came new footage on Twitter every night of the NYPD acting like bad cops out of a Harvey Keitel flick: cops harassing peaceful crowds, cops kettling activists, cops literally driving a car into a crowd of protestors.
—Maris Kreizman, Rolling Stone, 24 June 2025
The relative lack of substance across the board can’t help feeling like a cop out for a show that’s been capable of a lot more.
—Christian Blauvelt, IndieWire, 14 June 2025
About 20 minutes later, the two cops out in front were joined by a third officer.
—Melody Chiu, People.com, 7 Jan. 2025
The judges avoid giving critiques to the girls this week but do talk among one another, which is kind of weird but also means that nobody gets to cop out of Rate-a-Queen and just imitate the judges.
—Jason P. Frank, Vulture, 3 Jan. 2025
Sometimes that feels like a bit of a cop out.
—Alison Herman, Variety, 30 Sep. 2024
Noun
Again, this isn’t a cop-out, but the familiarity doesn’t give either side an edge.
—Megan Feringa, New York Times, 27 July 2025
Bloy’s answer to Variety’s question is both understandable and a total cop-out.
—Nicholas Quah, Vulture, 15 July 2025
And yet there’s hardly an ounce of violence on screen, which feels like both a cop-out and, in some ways, an accomplishment.
—Jordan Mintzer, HollywoodReporter, 8 July 2025
This is a bit of a cop-out, but there’s not much drama in the room unless injury hits.
—Parker Gabriel, Denver Post, 7 July 2025
Ultimately, the labor export program shouldn’t be seen as a cop-out by the government but rather as a single element of a much larger jobs plan that ought to prioritize opportunities in the country.
—Martin K.n Siele, semafor.com, 20 June 2025
Such a cop-out is the underlying, depressing reality with all of these remakes: No change can be too daring, no update too significant.
—David Sims, The Atlantic, 13 June 2025
Many would have to raise their taxes as most do not allow for deficit spending (for the federal government, the optimal cop-out).
—Gary Franks, Hartford Courant, 6 June 2025
Of course, there will always be times when a company catches you by surprise and lists your name along with other underperforming employees in a cop-out to cover their atrocious layoffs.
—Rachel Wells, Forbes.com, 5 May 2025
Verb
On Thursday, there were 652 officers on the force, with nearly 100 cops out on some kind of administrative or medical leave.
—Shomik Mukherjee, Mercury News, 8 Aug. 2025
But with that brief wave of hope came new footage on Twitter every night of the NYPD acting like bad cops out of a Harvey Keitel flick: cops harassing peaceful crowds, cops kettling activists, cops literally driving a car into a crowd of protestors.
—Maris Kreizman, Rolling Stone, 24 June 2025
The relative lack of substance across the board can’t help feeling like a cop out for a show that’s been capable of a lot more.
—Christian Blauvelt, IndieWire, 14 June 2025
About 20 minutes later, the two cops out in front were joined by a third officer.
—Melody Chiu, People.com, 7 Jan. 2025
The judges avoid giving critiques to the girls this week but do talk among one another, which is kind of weird but also means that nobody gets to cop out of Rate-a-Queen and just imitate the judges.
—Jason P. Frank, Vulture, 3 Jan. 2025
Sometimes that feels like a bit of a cop out.
—Alison Herman, Variety, 30 Sep. 2024
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cop-out
Noun
-
Ripley can’t catch a break with her escape pods, and the end of this film features an astonishing demise to one of cinema’s greatest heroines.—
Dan Heching,
CNN Money,
12 Aug. 2025
-
Part of what makes Zubimendi so valuable in these sequences is his constant movement to offer himself for the pass, often seen bouncing around midfield, constantly scanning the pitch, with a real knack for showing up at the right time to help his team-mates escape.—
Thom Harris,
New York Times,
11 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
By the time Sega backed out of the hardware race post-Dreamcast, Shinobi mostly limped on with a couple of 3D entries for PlayStation and Nintendo platforms before fading into obscurity.—
Christopher Cruz,
Rolling Stone,
3 Sep. 2025
-
The driver was trying to back out, but the tires were just spinning in the mud.—
Harriet Ramos,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
3 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
By the reunion, some were better equipped to self-edit — or at least more committed to the art of evasion — than others.—
Caroline Framke,
Vulture,
26 Aug. 2025
-
The Department of Justice is stepping up criminal enforcement, bringing high-profile cases against crypto investors this year while signaling broader crackdowns on tax evasion.—
Patrick Camuso,
Forbes.com,
25 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
For instance, a retailer running a flash sale event can leverage an AI recommendation engine on serverless functions, dynamically scaling up to support hundreds of thousands of users in parallel and scaling back down to zero once the demand subsides.—
Navneet Tyagi,
Forbes.com,
29 Aug. 2025
-
Temperatures will cool back down to the low to mid 50s overnight.—
Anna Skinner,
MSNBC Newsweek,
29 Aug. 2025
Noun
-
In addition, high marginal tax rates can impede domestic investment and lead to tax avoidance.—
Jordan King,
MSNBC Newsweek,
29 Aug. 2025
-
Consistent avoidance of risk, parroting leadership views without critique and silencing ideas or opinions are all signs of SQM dominance.—
Venkat Rao,
Forbes.com,
28 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
In both cases, Tibetans immediately backed off.—
Tenzin Dorjee,
Foreign Affairs,
1 Sep. 2025
-
Discomfort is a sign to back off.—
Deirdre Bardolf,
FOXNews.com,
30 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
The Food and Drug Administration is recalling frozen shrimp sold at Walmart for possible radioactive chemical contamination.—
Cheryl V. Jackson,
IndyStar,
21 Aug. 2025
-
The Food and Drug Administration is recalling frozen shrimp sold at Walmart, including stores in Ohio and Kentucky, for possible radioactive chemical contamination.—
Mary Walrath-Holdridge,
The Enquirer,
21 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Cop-out.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cop-out. Accessed 7 Sep. 2025.
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