freeze out

verb

froze out; frozen out; freezing out; freezes out

transitive verb

: exclude

freeze-out

ˈfrēz-ˌau̇t 

noun

Synonyms

• ban
• bar
• close out
• count (out)
• debar
• eliminate
• except
• exclude
• rule out
• shut out

Examples of freeze out in a Sentence

a housing market that effectively freezes out people of moderate means

Recent Examples on the Web

Cutter Gauthier, the No. 5 overall pick of the Philadelphia Flyers in the 2022 draft, who then froze out the organization a little more than a year ago before a trade to the Anaheim Ducks, will play the first game of his career at Wells Fargo Center in South Philadelphia on Saturday. —Kevin Kurz, The Athletic, 10 Jan. 2025

If McCarthy is sacked — but not soon— then teams with openings might hire other candidates and he could be frozen out of 2025 jobs. —David K. Li, NBC News, 6 Jan. 2025

The mere optioning of a book or article creates another piece of value: the breathless announcement of the deal in a trade publication, which might freeze out competitors. —Simon Van Zuylen-Wood, Vulture, 1 Nov. 2024

Further points of conflict include insisting on a contract renewal for Ferland Mendy when Perez didn't want him, and mishandling an underused Arda Guler who has been frozen out thus far in 2024/2025 despite showing signs of promise when afforded cameos in his maiden campaign. —Tom Sanderson, Forbes, 27 Oct. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1861, in the meaning defined above

Legal Definition

freezeout

1 of 2 noun

freeze·​out

ˈfrēz-ˌau̇t

: a corporate action (as a merger) taken by those in control of the corporation (as controlling shareholders or the board of directors) for the purpose of causing the minority shareholders to lose their equity in the corporation (as by the sale of their shares) compare squeezeout

freeze out

2 of 2 transitive verb

: to subject to a freezeout