out of

/ˈaʊt əv/

//ˈaʊt əv// prep

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"out-of" is a 5-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“out of” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a preposition. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency English
6
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Expressing motion away, literal or figurative; opposed to into.

Corpus desk

Index EN-out-of · out of · English

out of · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "O" thin
  • PHOTO-UNK Peer pending

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Key facts for out of
PropertyValue
Headwordout of
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechPreposition
IPA/ˈaʊt əv/
Letters6
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “out of” in English

out ofranks outside the top 100,000 English headwords, in the long tail of specialist, archaic, or seldom-used vocabulary, exactly the territory where a reader stops mid-sentence to double-check spelling.

Beyond rank #100,000. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

out of is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as apreposition, transcribed /ˈaʊt əv/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 13 senses are on record.

Zero misspellings are on record for out of in our index, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. Our confusable-pair dataset has no match for it, since nothing in our dataset looks or sounds close enough to cause mix-ups.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English oute of, from Old English ūt of. The correct English form is out of, spelled O-U-T- -O-F.

Definition

  1. 1
    Expressing motion away, literal or figurative; opposed to into.
  2. 2
    Expressing motion away, literal or figurative; opposed to into.
  3. 3
    Expressing motion away, literal or figurative; opposed to into.
  4. 4
    Expressing motion away, literal or figurative; opposed to into.
  5. 5
    Expressing motion away, literal or figurative; opposed to into.
  6. 6
    Expressing motion away, literal or figurative; opposed to into.
  7. 7
    Expressing position outside, literal or figurative; opposed to in.
  8. 8
    Expressing position outside, literal or figurative; opposed to in.
  9. 9
    Expressing position outside, literal or figurative; opposed to in.
  10. 10
    From a given cause or motivation.
  11. 11
    From a given material as means of construction.
  12. 12
    In a manner based in but not always in (a certain place); (loosely) in.
  13. 13
    expression of how distant a person, an event or object is.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how out of appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. The audience came out of the theater.
  2. The cat jumped out of the basket.

Etymology

From Middle English oute of, from Old English ūt of.

Synonyms

exterior toexternal to (2, 3)outside of (2, 3)withoutfromoffor

This word in other languages

de(Español)hors de(Français)aus(Deutsch)de(Português)

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "out of"?
"out of" is spelled O-U-T- -O-F. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈaʊt əv/.
What does "out of" mean?
As a preposition, "out of" means: Expressing motion away, literal or figurative; opposed to into.
How do you pronounce "out of"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "out of" is /ˈaʊt əv/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "out of"?
From Middle English oute of, from Old English ūt of. See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list