as in excluding
to prevent the participation, consideration, or inclusion of
another loss would rule them out of the tournament
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Recent Examples of ruling out
Smith for some time has dangled the prospect of running as an unconventional candidate against a field of career politicians, but there’s a big gap between not ruling out a run and actually doing it.
—
Ted Johnson, Deadline, 13 Feb. 2026
Investigators are not ruling out sabotage carried out by anarchists, citing similarities to the sabotage that targeted the French network during the 2024 Paris Olympics, when France’s high-speed train lines were targeted by multiple malicious acts including arson.
—Antonia Mortensen, CNN Money, 7 Feb. 2026
Once there, Glick quickly gathered information that contradicted claims the authorities had made in ruling out foul play.
—Eren Orbey, New Yorker, 13 Oct. 2025
Ted Johnson, Deadline, 13 Feb. 2026
Investigators are not ruling out sabotage carried out by anarchists, citing similarities to the sabotage that targeted the French network during the 2024 Paris Olympics, when France’s high-speed train lines were targeted by multiple malicious acts including arson.
—Antonia Mortensen, CNN Money, 7 Feb. 2026
Once there, Glick quickly gathered information that contradicted claims the authorities had made in ruling out foul play.
—Eren Orbey, New Yorker, 13 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ruling out
Verb
-
This, to justify excluding sociology classes as meeting core requirements, now the status quo for all state universities in Florida.—
Wendy Nelson Espeland,
Mercury News,
11 Feb. 2026
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For the first nine months of the year, sales globally were up 1%, excluding the impact of currency exchange rates.—
Chris Isidore,
CNN Money,
10 Feb. 2026
Verb
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While in Congress, Harder has advocated for banning corporate political action committees and has opposed the Delta Tunnel project.—
William Melhado,
Sacbee.com,
15 Feb. 2026
-
Proponents of banning major firms from buying single-family homes, many of whom are on the Left and populist Right, argue that those investors are crowding the market for homebuyers.—
Zach Halaschak,
The Washington Examiner,
15 Feb. 2026
Verb
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The Knights took home three points in round two with the Wolverines while also shutting out Chaminade 1-0.—
Justin Vigil Zuniga,
Daily News,
29 Jan. 2026
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Arenas shuffled up and down the pickleball court and shifted laterally, quickly racking up the points and shutting out Jennings in the game, 11-0.—
Haley Sawyer,
Oc Register,
20 Jan. 2026
Verb
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The incident demonstrates that freezing out a critical voice through administrative pressure constitutes an authoritarian suppression of dissent, with the blocking itself becoming more newsworthy and damaging to the administration than the governor’s original remarks would have been.—
George Skelton,
Los Angeles Times,
26 Jan. 2026
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Minnesota officials said on Thursday that the FBI is taking the lead on the investigation and freezing out state investigators.—
Ted Johnson,
Deadline,
9 Jan. 2026
Verb
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The candidate also listed support for local law enforcement, reducing government spending and eliminating taxes on Social Security as other campaign priorities.—
William Melhado,
Sacbee.com,
15 Feb. 2026
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Decanting and combining your spices is an easy first step to reducing clutter and eliminating duplicates.—
Cody Godwin,
USA Today,
15 Feb. 2026
Verb
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The proposal bolsters a 2017 law generally barring cities from passing laws to limit short-term rentals.—
Mark Dee,
Idaho Statesman,
10 Feb. 2026
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The lawsuit is challenging a requirement that these parents be placed on a state registry, barring them from certain jobs.—
Shoshana Walter,
CBS News,
10 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Ruling out.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ruling%20out. Accessed 18 Feb. 2026.
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