rule out

rule out idiom
  1. Eliminate from consideration, exclude, as in The option of starting over again has been ruled out. [Second half of 1800s]
  2. Prevent, make impossible, as in The snowstorm ruled out our weekly rehearsal. [First half of 1900s]

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer. Copyright © 2003, 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

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