sell out
[verb]
Synonyms:
- dispose of, be out of stock of, get rid of, run out of
- betray, double-cross (informal), sell down the river (informal), stab in the back

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Related Words: dump, move, unload, sacrifice

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English Thesaurus: hit, beat, strike, punch, thump, ...

[TahlilGaran] English Synonym Dictionary ▲

sell out phrasal verb (see also sell)

1. if a shop sells out of something, it has no more of that particular thing left to sell
be/have sold out
Sorry, we’re sold out.
sell out of
We’ve completely sold out of those shirts in your size, sir.

2. if products, tickets for an event etc sell out, they are all sold and there are none left:
Wow! Those cakes sold out fast.
be/have sold out
Tonight’s performance is completely sold out.

3. to change your beliefs or principles, especially in order to get more money or some other advantage – used to show disapproval:
ex-hippies who’ve sold out and become respectable businessmen

4. to sell your business or your share in a business:
Wyman says he’ll sell out if business doesn’t pick up.
sell out to
The T-mail Co. has sold out to San José-based DMX Inc for an undisclosed sum.

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

ˈsell-out , sell‧out /ˈselaʊt/ noun [singular]

1. a performance, sports game etc for which all the tickets have been sold:
The concert was expected to be a sell-out.
a sellout crowd of 32,000

2. informal a situation in which someone has not done what they promised to do or were expected to do by the people who trusted them:
a sellout of the poor for political reasons

3. informal someone who has not done what they promised to do or who is not loyal to their friends or supporters, especially in order to become more popular, richer etc:
Many black students regarded him as a sellout.

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

hit to hit someone quickly and hard with your hand, a stick etc:
He hit him hard in the stomach.
I don’t like to see people hitting a dog.
beat to hit someone deliberately many times, especially very hard:
The girl had been beaten to death.
He was beating the donkey with a stick.
strike written to hit someone with your hand or a weapon. Strike is more formal than hit and is mainly used in written English:
Her husband struck her twice across the face.
Police say that the man had been struck on the head.
punch to hit someone hard with your closed hand, especially in a fight:
I punched him on the nose.
She was screaming and punching him with her fists.
thump /θʌmp/ informal to punch someone very hard:
Sometimes I just want to thump him.
beat somebody up to hurt someone badly in a violent attack, by hitting them many times:
If I tell the police, they'll beat me up.
He had been beaten up and tortured with lighted cigarettes.
slap to hit someone with your open hand, especially because you are angry with them:
They had a big row and she ended up slapping him.
spank (also smack especially British English) to hit someone, especially a child, with your open hand in order to punish them:
Should a parent ever smack a child?
I don’t agree with smacking.
In those days, children were spanked if they behaved badly.
knock to hit a door or window with your closed hand in order to attract the attention of the people inside:
Someone was knocking on the door.
I knocked loudly but no one came.
whack /wæk/ informal to hit something very hard:
Edmonds whacked the ball into the air.
bash to hit something hard, especially in a way that causes damage:
The police had to bash the door down to get in.
tap to gently hit something with your fingers, often in order to attract someone’s attention:
I tapped him on the shoulder.
I heard someone tapping on the window.
rap to knock quickly or hit something several times:
He rapped the table with his pen to bring the meeting to order.
Two police officers rapped on the door at 7 o'clock in the morning.
bang to suddenly hit something hard, in a way that makes a loud noise:
Her father banged his fist down on the table angrily.
The door suddenly banged shut.
pound written to hit something many times with a lot of force:
I could hear the sea pounding on the rocks.
She pounded on the door and shouted wildly.
hammer written to hit something quickly many times making a loud continuous noise:
The rain was hammering on the roof.
A crowd of people were outside hammering on the door angrily.
bump to hit a part of your body against something, especially because you do not see or notice it:
Careful you don’t bump your head – the ceiling’s very low.
bang/bash to hit something hard, so that you hurt yourself or damage something:
He banged into the car in front.
I bashed my knee climbing over a gate.
She fell and bashed her chin on the ground.
stub to hit your toe against something and hurt it:
I stubbed my toe on the piano leg.
bestseller a book that a lot of people buy:
His prize-winning book ‘A Year in Provence’ became an international bestseller.
blockbuster a film that a lot of people watch, especially an exciting film:
a Hollywood blockbuster
a blockbuster movie
sell-out a concert, sports event etc which so many people want to see that all the tickets are sold:
The concert was a sell-out.
the band’s sell-out tour of the US
cult movie/band/figure etc a film, band, person etc that has become very popular and fashionable with a particular group of people:
a cult TV programme
craze something that suddenly becomes popular, so that a lot of people do it, buy it etc:
the latest dance craze that has been sweeping the US
the craze for ultra expensive designer jeans
fad informal something that is very popular for a short time – used about something that you disapprove of, which you do not think will last for very long:
Most diets are just fads.
I think it’s a passing fad.

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲

popular liked by a lot of people:
a popular restaurant
Marmaris is one of Turkey’s most popular tourist destinations.
His films were hugely popular.
well-liked used about someone who many people like:
He is an experienced and well-liked member of the team.
Stein is well-respected and well-liked by the troops.
big/huge [not before noun] informal very popular, especially in a particular place:
The band are big in Europe.
Apparently this type of game is huge in Japan.
hot informal someone or something that is hot, is very popular or fashionable and everyone wants to use them, see them, buy them etc:
one of this year’s hottest fashion trends
a hot young singer from Nashville
bestseller a book that a lot of people buy:
His prize-winning book ‘A Year in Provence’ became an international bestseller.
blockbuster a film that a lot of people watch, especially an exciting film:
a Hollywood blockbuster
a blockbuster movie
hit something such as a song, show, or film which is very popular and successful:
The band played all their old hits.
The film was a box-office hit (=a lot of people went to see it at the cinema).
She stars in ABC’s hit show ‘Desperate Housewives’.
sell-out a concert, sports event etc which so many people want to see that all the tickets are sold:
The concert was a sell-out.
the band’s sell-out tour of the US
cult movie/band/figure etc a film, band, person etc that has become very popular and fashionable with a particular group of people:
a cult TV programme
craze something that suddenly becomes popular, so that a lot of people do it, buy it etc:
the latest dance craze that has been sweeping the US
the craze for ultra expensive designer jeans
fad informal something that is very popular for a short time – used about something that you disapprove of, which you do not think will last for very long:
Most diets are just fads.
I think it’s a passing fad.

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲

sell out
sell out (of (something))
to sell all of something, so that there is none left.
We sold out of the souvenir T-shirts in the first couple of hours.

During the summer the campgrounds are sold out each night.

Her cruises regularly book up months in advance and almost always sell out.

sell out (someone/something)
to stop being loyal to someone or something.
He accused Congress of selling out the American people to lawyers who opposed the bill.

I could sell you all out and go straight to the police with this information.

Usage notes: often money is the advantage that is gotten:
Anyone who would sell out his own country for money deserves to go to prison for life.

to accept money to stop following your principles.
So many musicians simply sell out to the demands of the industry and abandon their art.

[TahlilGaran] English Idioms Dictionary ▲

sell out something
sell out (someone/something)
to stop being loyal to someone or something.
He accused Congress of selling out the American people to lawyers who opposed the bill.

I could sell you all out and go straight to the police with this information.

Usage notes: often money is the advantage that is gotten:
Anyone who would sell out his own country for money deserves to go to prison for life.

[TahlilGaran] English Idioms Dictionary ▲

sell out
1. • sell out
to sell all of a product
Every year our company is able to sell out most of our summer goods.

2. • sell out (someone or something)
to be disloyal, to betray someone or something
The man does not want to sell out his moral values when he begins work for the new company.

3. • sell (something) out
to sell all of something
They sold the concert out in every city that it went to.

[TahlilGaran] English Idioms Dictionary ▲

sell out something
• sell out (someone or something)
to be disloyal, to betray someone or something
The man does not want to sell out his moral values when he begins work for the new company.

[TahlilGaran] English Idioms Dictionary ▲

sell something out
• sell (something) out
to sell all of something
They sold the concert out in every city that it went to.

[TahlilGaran] English Idioms Dictionary ▲

sell out
v.
1a. To sell all of a certain thing which a store has in stock.
In the store's January white sale the sheets and pillowcases were sold out in two days.
1b. To sell all the stock and close the store; go out of business.
The local hardware store sold out last month and was replaced by a cafe.
2. informal To be unfaithful to your country for money or other reward; be disloyal; sell a secret; accept a bribe.
In the Revolutionary War, Benedict Arnold sold out to the British.
The dishonest wrestler sold out to his opponent for a hundred dollars.

[TahlilGaran] English Idioms Dictionary ▲