Synonyms of act out

act out

verb

as in to raise hell

to behave badly

because his parents spent so much time with his chronically ill sister, the boy resorted to acting out in order to get attention

Synonyms & Similar Words

• raise hell
• misconduct
• disobey
• carry on
• run riot
• act up
• rebel
• raise Cain
• misbehave
• cut up
• horse around
• kid (around)
• show off
• fool around
• clown (around)
• roughhouse

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• act
• obey
• conduct
• bear
• quit
• comply
• conform
• move
• control
• contain
• handle
• check
• collect
• acquit
• restrain
• comport
• inhibit
• compose
• curb
• deport
• demean
• constrain
• quiet
• repress

Examples of act out in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

All that time in his vile proximity serves as a challenge to recognize what’s right in front of you; not an antihero, not a misunderstood victim, not a bully who just needs a little parental guidance to stop acting out. —Ben Travers, IndieWire, 12 Sep. 2024

And kids may not know how to speak up about their feelings, but instead may act out with anger or irritability. —Kayla Jimenez, USA TODAY, 16 Aug. 2024

At school, all three engage in a bizarre acting out that involves bodily fluids. —Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 16 Aug. 2024

Fame is about acting out other people’s fantasies, and the clown prince of crime’s only value to his supporters is as a symbol of their own desire to burn the world down. —David Ehrlich, IndieWire, 4 Sep. 2024