out·right
ˌau̇t-ˈrīt 
1
: in entirety : completely
rejected the proposal outright
outright refuses to cooperate with law enforcement—
Tim Murphy
Tim Murphy2
: on the spot : instantaneously
was killed outright
3
: without lien (see lien sense 1) or encumbrance (see encumbrance sense 2)
purchased the property outright for cash
4
: without restraint or reservation
laughed outright
cried outright
5
archaic
: straight ahead : directly
out·right
ˈau̇t-ˌrīt
1
a
: being completely or exactly what is stated
an outright lie
b
: given without reservation
outright grants for research
c
: made without encumbrance or lien
an outright sale
2
archaic
: proceeding directly onward
outrightly
adverb
Synonyms
Adjective
- absolute
- all-out
- arrant
- blank
- blooming [chiefly British]
- bodacious [Southern & Midland]
- categorical
- categoric
- clean
- complete
- consummate
- crashing
- damn
- damned
- dead
- deadly
- definite
- downright
- dreadful
- fair
- flat
- flat-out
- out-and-out
- perfect
- plumb
- profound
- pure
- rank
- regular
- sheer
- simple
- stark
- stone
- straight-out
- thorough
- thoroughgoing
- total
- unadulterated
- unalloyed
- unconditional
- unmitigated
- unqualified
- utter
- very
Examples of outright in a Sentence
Adverb
She won the competition outright.
The painting is now owned outright by the museum.
Their house was destroyed outright by the fire.
I bought the car outright.
Adjective
I was surprised by their outright rejection of the idea.
Recent Examples on the WebJessica Sager, Peoplemag, 16 Apr. 2024
Should someone outright lie about a person or devise a story that is completely concocted, there is recourse that people can potentially take by making use of defamation law.
—Christine Shen, Fortune, 15 Apr. 2024
Land redistribution ruined many families; artists and intellectuals were stifled and often outright killed; political opponents were tortured and murdered; and over the coming decades the country was plagued by famine, poverty and the suppression of free speech.
—Nick Hilden, Washington Post, 14 Apr. 2024
Privately, there have been multiple leaks, some claiming merely that the U.S. would not be participating in any response, others claiming that Biden would outright oppose a response.
—The Editors, National Review, 14 Apr. 2024
And in late March, Florida passed a law outright banning the use of social media platforms for kids under 14.
—Laura Bratton, Quartz, 11 Apr. 2024
To advance outright, Miami needs to win Wednesday’s game by at least two goals.
—Michelle Kaufman, Miami Herald, 10 Apr. 2024
Here’s what the newest election results show in San Diego
March 11, 2024
In the city of San Diego, Henry Foster III won a City Council seat outright — avoiding a runoff in the District 4 special election — and will be sworn in Monday morning.
—Emily Alvarenga, San Diego Union-Tribune, 5 Apr. 2024
Ava’s shortcomings — and her spiky presence on a show initially perceived as Smart’s solo vehicle — led some viewers to outright dislike the character.
—Daniel D'addario, Variety, 4 Apr. 2024
Laura Schulte, Journal Sentinel, 17 Apr. 2024
The Bears spent much of this season ranked No. 2 behind the Sooners and won the final Pac-12 title – the program’s first outright regular season crown.
—Laurence Miedema, The Mercury News, 17 Apr. 2024
And while not an outright victory, the outcome moved the Current to 3-0-1 this season and kept Kansas City atop the NWSL standings.
—Daniel Sperry, Kansas City Star, 15 Apr. 2024
If no single party wins an outright majority, then the leading party will usually ally with other, smaller parties.
—Astha Rajvanshi, TIME, 12 Apr. 2024
The flying experience can be unnerving for dogs: Crates, injuries or worse, outright bans in some cases.
—Melvin Backman, Quartz, 12 Apr. 2024
But the European policies are notably different from the outright bans for adolescents passed in 22 U.S. states, some of which threaten doctors with prison time or investigate parents for child abuse.
—Azeen Ghorayshi, New York Times, 9 Apr. 2024
The distributor advises the artist to cease promotional activity — assuming that the artist is responsible for the streaming violations — or, if the artist is unaware of the fraudulent activity, they are advised to remove the track from Spotify or face fines or an outright ban.
—Ari Herstand, Variety, 9 Apr. 2024
Accusation and projection must provide some of her lifeblood, but a real old-school diva, as the etiquette goes, is not going to outright admit to the nature of her bottomless appetite.
—Doreen St. Félix, The New Yorker, 1 Apr. 2024
Adverb
Later, when confronted with images of their bodies, Grant outright denied involvement with their murders.
—Jessica Sager, Peoplemag, 16 Apr. 2024
Should someone outright lie about a person or devise a story that is completely concocted, there is recourse that people can potentially take by making use of defamation law.
—Christine Shen, Fortune, 15 Apr. 2024
Land redistribution ruined many families; artists and intellectuals were stifled and often outright killed; political opponents were tortured and murdered; and over the coming decades the country was plagued by famine, poverty and the suppression of free speech.
—Nick Hilden, Washington Post, 14 Apr. 2024
Privately, there have been multiple leaks, some claiming merely that the U.S. would not be participating in any response, others claiming that Biden would outright oppose a response.
—The Editors, National Review, 14 Apr. 2024
And in late March, Florida passed a law outright banning the use of social media platforms for kids under 14.
—Laura Bratton, Quartz, 11 Apr. 2024
To advance outright, Miami needs to win Wednesday’s game by at least two goals.
—Michelle Kaufman, Miami Herald, 10 Apr. 2024
Here’s what the newest election results show in San Diego
March 11, 2024
In the city of San Diego, Henry Foster III won a City Council seat outright — avoiding a runoff in the District 4 special election — and will be sworn in Monday morning.
—Emily Alvarenga, San Diego Union-Tribune, 5 Apr. 2024
Ava’s shortcomings — and her spiky presence on a show initially perceived as Smart’s solo vehicle — led some viewers to outright dislike the character.
—Daniel D'addario, Variety, 4 Apr. 2024
Adjective
If the governor succeeds in the case, the Legislature would be prevented from outright blocking projects proposed under the stewardship program.
—Laura Schulte, Journal Sentinel, 17 Apr. 2024
The Bears spent much of this season ranked No. 2 behind the Sooners and won the final Pac-12 title – the program’s first outright regular season crown.
—Laurence Miedema, The Mercury News, 17 Apr. 2024
And while not an outright victory, the outcome moved the Current to 3-0-1 this season and kept Kansas City atop the NWSL standings.
—Daniel Sperry, Kansas City Star, 15 Apr. 2024
If no single party wins an outright majority, then the leading party will usually ally with other, smaller parties.
—Astha Rajvanshi, TIME, 12 Apr. 2024
The flying experience can be unnerving for dogs: Crates, injuries or worse, outright bans in some cases.
—Melvin Backman, Quartz, 12 Apr. 2024
But the European policies are notably different from the outright bans for adolescents passed in 22 U.S. states, some of which threaten doctors with prison time or investigate parents for child abuse.
—Azeen Ghorayshi, New York Times, 9 Apr. 2024
The distributor advises the artist to cease promotional activity — assuming that the artist is responsible for the streaming violations — or, if the artist is unaware of the fraudulent activity, they are advised to remove the track from Spotify or face fines or an outright ban.
—Ari Herstand, Variety, 9 Apr. 2024
Accusation and projection must provide some of her lifeblood, but a real old-school diva, as the etiquette goes, is not going to outright admit to the nature of her bottomless appetite.
—Doreen St. Félix, The New Yorker, 1 Apr. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'outright.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near outright
Cite this Entry
“Outright.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/outright. Accessed 24 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
outright
1 of 2 adverb
out·right
(ˈ)au̇t-ˈrīt
1
a
: in entirety : completely
sold outright
b
: without holding back
laughed outright
2
: on the spot : instantaneously
killed outright
outright
2 of 2 adjective
out·right
ˈau̇t-ˌrīt
1
: being exactly what is stated
an outright lie
2
: given without restriction
an outright gift
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