Cop-out definition

kŏpout
cop-out
See word origin
Frequency:
An excuse for inaction or evasion.
noun
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A failure to fulfill a commitment or responsibility or to face a difficulty squarely.
noun
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The definition of a cop out is a poor excuse for not doing something.

An example of a cop-out is when your boyfriend asks you on a date and you say you have to wash your hair.

noun
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A person who fails to fulfill a commitment or responsibility.
noun
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Alternative spelling of cop-out.
noun
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(idiomatic) To avoid or shirk, either by failing to perform, or by performing in a grossly insufficient, negligent, or superficial manner.

Faced with the prospect of cooking for himself, his first thought was to cop out and order a pizza.

verb
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(slang) The act or an instance of copping out, as by confessing, reneging, quitting, etc.
noun
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1

Other Word Forms

Noun

Singular:
cop-out
Plural:
cop-outs

Origin of cop-out

  • Probably from cop a plea

    From Wiktionary

Cop-out Sentence Examples

  • He had no ready solution, but continued to believe the ultimate solution she chose to these insurmountable obstacles was a cop-out.

  • That's a cop out.

  • But on second thoughts it seems a cop-out, because the same could be said of Father Christmas and tooth fairies.

  • Engaged Buddhism would then become a cop-out for frustrated meditators, a kind of Buddhism Lite.

  • On the contrary, it's an almost complete cop-out.

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Words near cop-out in the Dictionary