as in escape
the act or a means of getting or keeping away from something undesirable
I think that saying you're sick is just a cop-out to get out of going to work
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in to back out
to break a promise or agreement
don't cop out on your promise to pay for the damage
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of cop-out
Chris Waugh, The Athletic, 24 Feb. 2025
Their talk is confidential, even from us, which is a bit of a cop-out.
—Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 20 Feb. 2025
Making her a helpful ex-Widow is the ultimate cop-out, replacing complex real-world connections with generic globo-spy fantasy.
—Darren Franich, Vulture, 14 Feb. 2025
To some sequins and tones like black and gold could be viewed as easy cop-outs.
—Robyn Mowatt, Essence, 9 Jan. 2025
The first would be seen as a cop-out by hawkish elements in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, which saw one of its facilities hit and its missile production capacity depleted.
—Daniel Depetris, Chicago Tribune, 5 Nov. 2024
And that is not a cop-out answer, but the correct answer.
—Dane Brugler, The Athletic, 21 Aug. 2024
So many movies depict tech bringing out the worst in people, leaving us with the sort of cop-out villainy of computers are bad!
—Jordan Crucchiola, Vulture, 12 Oct. 2024
But to shift that responsibility back onto your consumers (by enticing them with a gift card) feels like a cop-out.
—Lindy Segal, Curbed, 18 Sep. 2024
Melody Chiu, People.com, 7 Jan. 2025
The judges avoid giving critiques to the girls this week but do talk among one another, which is kind of weird but also means that nobody gets to cop out of Rate-a-Queen and just imitate the judges.
—Jason P. Frank, Vulture, 3 Jan. 2025
Yair Lapid, Israel’s opposition leader, also condemned Israel’s move dubbing it a cop out.
—Ashleigh Fields, The Hill, 16 Dec. 2024
Who's the cat that won't cop out when there's danger all about?
—Brian Truitt, USA TODAY, 22 July 2024
He was walked by cops out of the 105th Precinct in handcuffs Thursday morning and later arraigned in Queens Criminal Supreme Court on murder charges.
—Rocco Parascandola, New York Daily News, 30 May 2024
As for Butler, his answer was Timothée Chalamet, which is a cop out.
—Tom Smyth, Vulture, 23 Feb. 2024
The performances by Robert De Niro and Al Pacino as, respectively, a thief and the cop out to catch him bring such intensity and power to the film.
—Mark Olsen, Los Angeles Times, 5 Jan. 2024
Needless to say, my hot glue gun gets a lot of action, and after my last one copped out, my shopping research brought me to a life-changing discovery: cordless glue guns actually exist.
—Stephanie Osmanski, Better Homes & Gardens, 26 Oct. 2023
Noun
Please don’t say Darwin Nunez — David C. Waugh: This may seem like a cop-out answer, but Newcastle are confident that, as things stand, Alexander Isak is going nowhere.
—Chris Waugh, The Athletic, 24 Feb. 2025
Their talk is confidential, even from us, which is a bit of a cop-out.
—Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 20 Feb. 2025
Making her a helpful ex-Widow is the ultimate cop-out, replacing complex real-world connections with generic globo-spy fantasy.
—Darren Franich, Vulture, 14 Feb. 2025
To some sequins and tones like black and gold could be viewed as easy cop-outs.
—Robyn Mowatt, Essence, 9 Jan. 2025
The first would be seen as a cop-out by hawkish elements in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, which saw one of its facilities hit and its missile production capacity depleted.
—Daniel Depetris, Chicago Tribune, 5 Nov. 2024
And that is not a cop-out answer, but the correct answer.
—Dane Brugler, The Athletic, 21 Aug. 2024
So many movies depict tech bringing out the worst in people, leaving us with the sort of cop-out villainy of computers are bad!
—Jordan Crucchiola, Vulture, 12 Oct. 2024
But to shift that responsibility back onto your consumers (by enticing them with a gift card) feels like a cop-out.
—Lindy Segal, Curbed, 18 Sep. 2024
Verb
About 20 minutes later, the two cops out in front were joined by a third officer.
—Melody Chiu, People.com, 7 Jan. 2025
The judges avoid giving critiques to the girls this week but do talk among one another, which is kind of weird but also means that nobody gets to cop out of Rate-a-Queen and just imitate the judges.
—Jason P. Frank, Vulture, 3 Jan. 2025
Yair Lapid, Israel’s opposition leader, also condemned Israel’s move dubbing it a cop out.
—Ashleigh Fields, The Hill, 16 Dec. 2024
Who's the cat that won't cop out when there's danger all about?
—Brian Truitt, USA TODAY, 22 July 2024
He was walked by cops out of the 105th Precinct in handcuffs Thursday morning and later arraigned in Queens Criminal Supreme Court on murder charges.
—Rocco Parascandola, New York Daily News, 30 May 2024
As for Butler, his answer was Timothée Chalamet, which is a cop out.
—Tom Smyth, Vulture, 23 Feb. 2024
The performances by Robert De Niro and Al Pacino as, respectively, a thief and the cop out to catch him bring such intensity and power to the film.
—Mark Olsen, Los Angeles Times, 5 Jan. 2024
Needless to say, my hot glue gun gets a lot of action, and after my last one copped out, my shopping research brought me to a life-changing discovery: cordless glue guns actually exist.
—Stephanie Osmanski, Better Homes & Gardens, 26 Oct. 2023
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cop-out
Noun
-
One of the cops is executed, and the other escapes.—
Chris Koseluk,
The Hollywood Reporter,
28 Feb. 2025
-
More recently, he’s allowed for individual room rentals during peak seasons, thus welcoming almost-regular folks to that pristine Caribbean escape, which also happens to be a successful lemur refuge.—
Heidi Mitchell,
Robb Report,
28 Feb. 2025
Verb
-
Get those umbrellas back out, Sacramento! After a period of clear skies and seasonably warm weather, the capital region is expected to see some showers as March kicks off, the National Weather Service said.—
Camila Pedrosa,
Sacramento Bee,
1 Mar. 2025
-
When the audience at the Greek kept cheering, Jones advised her to go back out and sing one more song.—
Paul Grein,
Billboard,
26 Feb. 2025
Noun
-
The Riverside County District Attorney's Office has also charged members of the ring, including Reyes and Diana Villa Pineda, with tax evasion.—
Dan Perry,
Newsweek,
20 Feb. 2025
-
Savannah Chrisley is turning to President Donald Trump for help as her parents, Todd and Julie Chrisley, remain incarcerated after being convicted of federal bank fraud and tax evasion.—
Ashley Hume,
Fox News,
20 Feb. 2025
Verb
-
While that escalated into an all out trade war with China in 2019, by 2020 Trump backed down and signed a trade agreement.—
Sergei Klebnikov,
Forbes,
1 Mar. 2025
-
But the veteran has never backed down from anyone or any challenge during his coaching career.—
Dan Perry,
Newsweek,
28 Feb. 2025
Noun
-
That includes traffic collision avoidance systems, ground proximity warning systems, advanced weather radars, along with a multitude of other systems that are constantly being refined, Doyle explained.—
Cathy Cassata,
Health,
4 Mar. 2025
-
Tuas port's fleet currently includes more than 200 of these AGVs, which use RFID to communicate with underground transponders and share their location in real-time for precise positioning and collision avoidance.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
2 Mar. 2025
Verb
-
Haynie says Ackerman actually called McClendon and asked him to back off until the divorce was official.—
Anne-Marie Green,
CBS News,
1 Mar. 2025
-
President Trump backs off after calling Zelenskyy a dictator.—
Joey Garrison,
USA TODAY,
28 Feb. 2025
Verb
-
The automaker is recalling recalling 240,510 of its 2020-2021 Ford Explorer and Lincoln Aviator vehicles because the seat belt buckle anchor bolts at one or more seating positions may be improperly secured, Ford said in a report filed to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.—
Mike Snider,
USA TODAY,
22 Feb. 2025
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And when Fields recalls an incident at Lumon from 20 years ago, Irving realizes something fishy is going on, since severance was only invented — or, at least, only went public — a dozen years before.—
Alan Sepinwall,
Rolling Stone,
21 Feb. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Cop-out.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cop-out. Accessed 8 Mar. 2025.
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