shout-out

noun

ˈshau̇t-ˌau̇t 

variants or less commonly shoutout

plural shout-outs also shoutouts

informal

: a public expression of greeting, praise, or acknowledgement directed toward a person or group often as part of a performance, recording, or broadcast

She opened her acceptance speech with a shout-out to James Baldwin, the author of the book on which the movie was based, calling him "one of the greatest artists of our time."

—Neal Justin

Here are a few lyrical shout-outs to some of hip hop's favorite designers.

—Scott Poulson-Bryant

She even gave a shoutout to one of her former teachers on Twitter, and encouraged others to do the same.

—Emily Sweeney

Examples of shout-out in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Following Durant’s shout-out to Reese, rumors have surfaced suggesting the two may be romantically involved. —Preezy Brown, VIBE.com, 5 Mar. 2025

And big shout-out to Cube; that’s another brother that has put so many brothers on, man, and don’t really get the props for it. —Angel Diaz, Billboard, 4 Mar. 2025

Meanwhile, Sandler's Oscars appearance came after O'Brien gave the Happy Gilmore star a shout-out, before the camera panned to him in the audience. —Becca Longmire, People.com, 4 Mar. 2025

Adrien Brody, who is dating Weinstein's ex-wife Georgina Chapman, gave a shout-out to the kids Weinstein shares with Chapman while accepting the Oscar for best actor on Sunday. —Brendan Morrow, USA TODAY, 4 Mar. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1990, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for shout-out

• about
• bailout
• blackout
• blowout
• breakout
• burnout
• buyout
• checkout
• closeout
• cutout
• devout
• dropout

Kids Definition

shout–out

noun

variants also shoutout

ˈshau̇t-ˌau̇t

informal

: a public expression of greeting, praise, or acknowledgment directed toward a person or group often as part of a performance, broadcast, or recording