strikeout

1 of 2

noun

strike·​out ˈstrīk-ˌau̇t 

: an out in baseball resulting from a batter's being charged with three strikes

strike out

2 of 2

verb

struck out; struck out also stricken out; striking out; strikes out

intransitive verb

1

: to enter upon a course of action

2

: to set out vigorously

3

: to make an out in baseball by a strikeout

4

: to finish bowling a string with consecutive strikes

specifically : to bowl three strikes in the last frame

5

: fail sense 2c

transitive verb

of a baseball pitcher : to retire (someone) by a strikeout

Synonyms

Verb

• bomb
• collapse
• crater
• fail
• flame out
• flop
• flunk
• fold
• founder
• miss
• tank
• wash out

Examples of strikeout in a Sentence

Verb

their joint venture in Las Vegas struck out, and they hurriedly dissolved the partnership

struck out all references to indecent matters

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

On the other side, his strikeout rate dipped this season for the first since 2018. —Jack Magruder, Forbes, 2 Nov. 2024

Over those 14 starts, Snell would go 5-0 with a 1.23 ERA and 114 strikeouts. —David Faris, Newsweek, 2 Nov. 2024

Verb

Following a jarring pair of Yankee errors, Cole struck out two hitters. —Nicholas Dawidoff, The New Yorker, 3 Nov. 2024

Yankees starter Carlos Rodón went six innings and gave up only one run, while striking out nine Guardians in Game 1 as Soto and Giancarlo Stanton hit crucial home runs to put New York ahead. —Don Yaeger, Forbes, 22 Oct. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1887, in the meaning defined above

Verb

1707, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1

Kids Definition

strikeout

1 of 2 noun

strike·​out ˈstrī-ˌkau̇t 

: an out in baseball resulting from a batter's being charged with three strikes

strike out

2 of 2 verb

(ˈ)strī-ˈkau̇t

1

: to enter upon a course of action

struck out on my own after graduation

2

: to make an out or cause to make an out in baseball by a strikeout

the shortstop struck out

the pitcher struck him out with a curve