to go out
- phrasal verb
- /ɡoʊ aʊt/
- The campfire began to die down, and soon it would go out completely.
- lights go out
The lights literally went out smash.
- The lights literally went out smash.
- I went and looked out at up and the light went out at that moment.
- And my job was to make sure that that fire didn't go out all night.
Examples
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When the storm hit, the electricity failed, causing the lights to go out unexpectedly.
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But the fire cannot go out
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But when the stage lights went out.
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When the power goes out and these modern conveniences fail, Americans are incapacitated.
Academic text (2008) -
We watched as the candles flickered and eventually went out one by one.
Synonyms
Make a fire, light, or cigarette stop burning
Stop a flame by breathing on it
Stop working or lose power, for example lights
Stop a fire, candle, or other light from burning
Stop a flame, candle, or small fire from burning
Stop a fire burning and spreading
Antonyms
How Bright
Surface Forms
Morphology
The components 'go' (move) and 'out' (away/outside) transparently suggest leaving home to socialize, which gives a plausible clue to a social/romantic activity. However, the specific conventionalized sense 'to date someone regularly' is an extended, culture-specific usage that is not fully predictable from the parts and typically requires prior exposure, so it is only partially transparent.
Etymology
Go out for lights and fires comes from the image of a small flame shrinking and disappearing into the dark; when the light 'goes out' it stops burning, so go out means 'to stop burning or shining'.