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toss out

B1 informal separable transitive
In simple words

To throw something away, or to make someone leave.

Literal meaning: To throw something in the direction of outside.

Meanings

1 B1 informal

To get rid of something by throwing it away or discarding it.

"I spent the weekend tossing out old magazines that had been cluttering the spare room."

Grammar: separable
2 B1 idiomatic informal

To eject or remove someone from a place or position.

"The bouncer tossed out three people who were causing trouble at the bar."

Grammar: separable
3 B2 idiomatic neutral

To reject an idea, proposal, or legal case as invalid or unworthy of consideration.

"The judge tossed out the lawsuit, ruling there was no basis for the claim."

Grammar: separable
Usage notes

Used in three main contexts: discarding physical objects, rejecting ideas or proposals, and ejecting a person from a place. All senses are informal and common in American English. The object typically comes between 'toss' and 'out' when it is a pronoun.

Commonly used with

junk idea proposal rubbish case person

Forms

Base
toss out
I/you/we/they
3rd person
tosses out
he/she/it
Past simple
tossed out
yesterday
Past participle
tossed out
have + pp
-ing form
tossing out
continuous

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Synonyms

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