gouge out
phrasal verb
gouged out; gouging out; gouges out
1
: to remove (something) by digging or cutting
The impact of the accident gouged a big piece out of the wall.
He threatened to gouge my eyes out.
2
: to make (a hole or path) by digging or cutting
The river gouged out a wide path between the mountains.
Examples of gouge out in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The second bullet had ripped a three-inch gouge out of a tree trunk, but had gone on to blast the bear on top of the shoulder.
—
Tom Stacer, Outdoor Life, 20 Feb. 2025
Ancient sheep herders in East Africa gouged out burial pits and placed large rocks over the corpses.
—Maria Cramer, New York Times, 16 Feb. 2025
Cordova then took the carrier to the ground, repeatedly punched him in the face and head, and tried to gouge out his eyes, prosecutors said.
—Jason Green, The Mercury News, 4 Feb. 2025
One remembers that Oedipus responds to the horror of the truth by gouging out his own eyes.
—Andrea Long Chu, Vulture, 11 Oct. 2024
The chimps gouged out his right eye and chewed off his nose, eight of his fingers, a chunk of his skull as well as parts of his lips, cheek, buttocks, genitals and feet.
—Rich Schapiro, NBC News, 12 Oct. 2024
The dog bit Ramirez, gouging out a large chunk of flesh from her left hand, according to the lawsuit.
—Keri Blakinger, Los Angeles Times, 26 July 2024
Social media is already full of videos of users trying to drink without caps scratching their nose, gouging out an eye, or cutting their lip.
—Itxu Díaz, National Review, 10 June 2024
There are some memorably gruesome deaths, including a doctor who’s sliced in half by an elevator cable and a reporter whose eyes are gouged out by crows.
—Josh Bell, Vulture, 5 Apr. 2024
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Tom Stacer, Outdoor Life, 20 Feb. 2025
Ancient sheep herders in East Africa gouged out burial pits and placed large rocks over the corpses.
—Maria Cramer, New York Times, 16 Feb. 2025
Cordova then took the carrier to the ground, repeatedly punched him in the face and head, and tried to gouge out his eyes, prosecutors said.
—Jason Green, The Mercury News, 4 Feb. 2025
One remembers that Oedipus responds to the horror of the truth by gouging out his own eyes.
—Andrea Long Chu, Vulture, 11 Oct. 2024
The chimps gouged out his right eye and chewed off his nose, eight of his fingers, a chunk of his skull as well as parts of his lips, cheek, buttocks, genitals and feet.
—Rich Schapiro, NBC News, 12 Oct. 2024
The dog bit Ramirez, gouging out a large chunk of flesh from her left hand, according to the lawsuit.
—Keri Blakinger, Los Angeles Times, 26 July 2024
Social media is already full of videos of users trying to drink without caps scratching their nose, gouging out an eye, or cutting their lip.
—Itxu Díaz, National Review, 10 June 2024
There are some memorably gruesome deaths, including a doctor who’s sliced in half by an elevator cable and a reporter whose eyes are gouged out by crows.
—Josh Bell, Vulture, 5 Apr. 2024
Dictionary Entries Near gouge out
Cite this Entry
“Gouge out.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/gouge%20out. Accessed 23 Feb. 2025.
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