Synonyms of cop-out

cop-out

noun

ˈkäp-ˌau̇t 

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

• escape
• evasion
• avoidance
• elusion
• eschewal
• shunning
• dodging
• out
• ducking
• eschewing
• runaround
• circumvention
• eluding
• shaking
• bypassing
• sidestepping
• deflection
• skirting
• prevention
• obviation
• averting
• precluding

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• submission
• toleration
• endurance
• abidance

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of cop-out

But the union is not wrong to call this a cop-out, either. —Eddie Brown, San Diego Union-Tribune, 30 May 2026

But merely saying that is a cop-out. —Bill Goodykoontz, AZCentral.com, 6 Feb. 2026

Retreating to one’s room in the middle of the day feels like a cop-out at many places, but here the indoor-outdoor flow transforms a late-afternoon nap into a pleasure without the guilt. —Alex Postman, Condé Nast Traveler, 22 Jan. 2026

Claiming that the shooter was still gathering is a cop-out by the refs. —Ira Winderman, Sun Sentinel, 15 Jan. 2026

In another day and age, the move might appear cheap — a cop-out that suggests cinematic universes and spin-offs and good old-fashioned comeuppance. —David Fear, Rolling Stone, 11 Nov. 2025

But in the wake of that buildup, the film's shockingly anticlimactic ending also feels like somewhat of a cop-out. —Megan McCluskey, Time, 24 Oct. 2025

Claiming victimhood was a cop-out; those who made accusations of assault were ridiculed. —Dan Piepenbring, Harpers Magazine, 24 Oct. 2025

Those who don’t will probably view it as a cop-out — which is understandable! —Nicholas Quah, Vulture, 24 Oct. 2025