outgrow

verb

out·​grow ˌau̇t-ˈgrō 

outgrew ˌau̇t-ˈgrü  ; outgrown ˌau̇t-ˈgrōn  ; outgrowing

transitive verb

1

: to grow or increase faster than

mankind is outgrowing food supplies

—R. C. Murphy

2

: to grow too large or too mature for

outgrew his best suit

the need to outgrow the habit of war

—Norman Cousins

Examples of outgrow in a Sentence

Kids outgrow their clothes so quickly.

The plant has outgrown my garden.

Our business is outgrowing its small office building.

She's outgrown most of her toys.

I realized that I had outgrown my old high school friends.

Recent Examples on the Web

While these items are practical, they’re typically outgrown within months. —Nia Bowers, USA TODAY, 29 Nov. 2024

The researchers discovered the protein clumps were also lurking in some mitochondria of human pancreatic cancer cells—tumors often outgrow their blood supply and thus run low on nutrients. —Bymitch Leslie, science.org, 8 Nov. 2024

Just as the internet—launched in 1983 to facilitate the sharing of information among researchers—has outgrown its concept, so too has web scraping grown from a somewhat limited idea into near-endless possibilities for data extraction. —Sandro Shubladze, Forbes, 3 Dec. 2024

While most rockers are fine for infants, kiddos outgrow them quickly. —Nia Bowers, USA TODAY, 29 Nov. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1597, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

outgrow

verb

out·​grow (ˈ)au̇t-ˈgrō 

outgrew -ˈgrü  ; outgrown -ˈgrōn  ; outgrowing

1

: to grow faster than

2

: to grow too large or too mature for

outgrew their clothes

outgrow playing with dolls