out of bounds
21
3.7
- idiom
:
fuera de límites
- Your room is out of bounds.
So, so until very recently, this has been considered to be, you know, wholly, wholly inappropriate and wholly out of bounds.
- So, so until very recently, this has been considered to be, you know, wholly, wholly inappropriate and wholly out of bounds.
- And that means that temporarily they're out of bounds, you know, so you, you have to develop your running skills so catch and get a bit closer.
- And we had a rogue priest in North America and the Assembly of Bishops just came out and said, Nope, he's playing out of bounds.
- One, lot of people defending honey baked hams being delicious, saying I was out of bounds on that.
Examples
-
This area is out of bounds for unauthorized personnel.
-
And I have told you before, this area is out of bounds to all of you people, except Captain Drazak.
-
I told you, it's out of bounds.
-
This room is out of bounds!
-
On second thought, the stove is out of bounds for now.
-
Until further orders, Yongsan is out of bounds.
-
You're out of bounds, guys.
-
Trancer hunting is out of bounds and you know it!
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And if I hear of any more of these outrageous incidents, I will be forced to declare the inn out of bounds.
-
For commercial reasons, Yantarny was somewhat out of bounds to independent travelers.
Fiction book (1995)
Synonyms
160
4.5
Behaving in a way that is not acceptable to others
102
4.6
Not allowed to enter, use, or talk about
12
9.1
Morally and socially wrong to most people
6
7.7
Not allowed by rules, laws, or official standards
3
6.1
Unusual in a way that does not follow normal rules
1
3.7
Not allowed by law or by an authority
1
5.8
Not visible inside a picture or not right for the situation
Rude and likely to offend people
Antonyms
How Permitted
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'not within the permitted limits' is directly and predictably derived from combining 'out' (outside) with 'of' and 'bounds' (limits), so the phrase literally denotes being outside limits. This compositional pattern is common in many languages and is a straightforward motion/spatial+limit construction, so a B1 learner who knows the constituent words will readily infer the MWE meaning.
Etymology
Out of bounds comes from sports. The word bounds meant the lines that mark the playing area, so when a ball or player passed those lines they were literally out of bounds, which is why today the phrase means 'not within the permitted area' or 'not allowed'.