as in to lose
to undergo defeat
quite embarrassingly, the top-seeded player bowed out in the first round of competition
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Recent Examples of bow out
Others bowed out voluntarily, like Issa Rae’s performance, Fellow Travelers, and Hamilton.
—
Alejandra Gularte, Vulture, 10 May 2025
Buffett bows out Warren Buffett speaks during the Berkshire Hathaway Annual Shareholders Meeting in Omaha, Nebraska on May 3, 2025.
—Jacob Pramuk, CNBC, 5 May 2025
Yet Harbour initially thought his character should have bowed out of the series even sooner.
—William Earl, Variety, 23 Apr. 2025
Boston swept them — then collapsed twice with 20-point leads and bowed out in six.
—Kristian Winfield, New York Daily News, 18 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for bow out
Alejandra Gularte, Vulture, 10 May 2025
Buffett bows out Warren Buffett speaks during the Berkshire Hathaway Annual Shareholders Meeting in Omaha, Nebraska on May 3, 2025.
—Jacob Pramuk, CNBC, 5 May 2025
Yet Harbour initially thought his character should have bowed out of the series even sooner.
—William Earl, Variety, 23 Apr. 2025
Boston swept them — then collapsed twice with 20-point leads and bowed out in six.
—Kristian Winfield, New York Daily News, 18 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for bow out
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bow out
Verb
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Water depth - The deeper the water, the sooner a vehicle loses traction on the road.—
STAR-TELEGRAM WEATHER BOT,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
4 June 2025
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Rosado, 52, is an urban planner and former North Bay Village manager who previously ran for the District 4 seat in 2017, losing to Reyes.—
Tess Riski,
Miami Herald,
4 June 2025
Verb
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In May 2022 — three years ago — Caltrans estimated that the project would cost $433 million, meaning that in addition to falling behind schedule, the cost has gone up by about $96 million in that time.—
Ariane Lange,
Sacbee.com,
3 June 2025
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In 2023, the number of fatalities fell slightly, to six fatal boating incidents resulting in seven deaths, according to state data.—
Stephen Underwood,
Hartford Courant,
3 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Bow out.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bow%20out. Accessed 6 Jun. 2025.
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