1 B2 informal
(British English, informal) To stay out of the house until very late or all night.
"Where have you been? You stopped out until three in the morning!"
inseparable
stop out
B2 informal inseparable intransitive
(British English) To stay out of the house, especially late at night; also used in printing to mean masking part of a surface.
In plain English
To stay away from home very late at night, or all night.
What does "stop out" mean?
One main meaning — here's how to use it.
Literal vs figurative
Words literally mean
To stop (remain) outside.
Actually means
To stay away from home very late at night, or all night.
Usage tip
In everyday British English, 'stop out' means to stay out late or all night, often used by parents speaking about children or partners. There is also a technical printing sense (to block out part of a plate). The colloquial sense is the more widely encountered one.
Words that pair with "stop out"
Natural word combinations native speakers use most often.
all night late until morning again partying
How to conjugate "stop out"
The five tense forms you'll use most often.
Base
stop out
I/you/we/they
3rd person
stops out
he/she/it
Past simple
stoped out
yesterday
Past participle
stoped out
have + pp
-ing form
stoping out
continuous
Hear "stop out" in the wild
Listen to native speakers using "stop out" in real YouTube videos — click a clip to watch it on Looplines.
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