act out
verb
acted out; acting out; acts out
1
a
: to represent in action
children act out what they read
b
: to translate into action
unwilling to act out their beliefs
2
: to express (something, such as an impulse or a fantasy) directly in overt behavior without modification to comply with social norms
: to behave badly or in a socially unacceptable often self-defeating manner especially as a means of venting painful emotions (such as fear or frustration)
Examples of act out in a Sentence
because his parents spent so much time with his chronically ill sister, the boy resorted to acting out in order to get attention
Recent Examples on the Web
White House officials sometimes refer to them during classified tabletop exercises acting out how the government would respond in an overwhelming disaster.
—
Brian Bennett, TIME, 15 Oct. 2024
The show featured puppets acting out myths in conversation with pianist Eric Lewis, a.k.a. ELEW.
—Julie Tremaine, People.com, 10 Oct. 2024
One of these cold bodies was behind the shopping center bombing that opened the season — not an ideologically motivated act of terrorism, but a deadly form of acting out by a son against his father.
—Alison Herman, Variety, 9 Oct. 2024
Players customize their characters’ abilities and personalities to either participate in a roleplaying session, act out scenes with NPCs to further the story, or engage in combat with terrifying monsters like bugbears or gloomstalkers.
—Kenna Hughes-Castleberry, Ars Technica, 30 Sep. 2024
See all Example Sentences for act out 
Brian Bennett, TIME, 15 Oct. 2024
The show featured puppets acting out myths in conversation with pianist Eric Lewis, a.k.a. ELEW.
—Julie Tremaine, People.com, 10 Oct. 2024
One of these cold bodies was behind the shopping center bombing that opened the season — not an ideologically motivated act of terrorism, but a deadly form of acting out by a son against his father.
—Alison Herman, Variety, 9 Oct. 2024
Players customize their characters’ abilities and personalities to either participate in a roleplaying session, act out scenes with NPCs to further the story, or engage in combat with terrifying monsters like bugbears or gloomstalkers.
—Kenna Hughes-Castleberry, Ars Technica, 30 Sep. 2024
See all Example Sentences for act out
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'act out.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Act out.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/act%20out. Accessed 2 Nov. 2024.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
act out
transitive verb
: to express (as an impulse or a fantasy) directly in overt behavior without modification to comply with social norms
act out an adolescent fantasy
: to behave badly or in a socially unacceptable often self-defeating manner especially as a means of venting painful emotions (as fear or frustration)
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