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Glite Dictionary
to whore oneself out

to whore oneself out

2 9.9
To give up your values for money or fame
  • phrasal verb
  • /hɔr wʌnˈsɛlf aʊt/
  • Offensive
translation icon : prostituirse
  • He refused to whore himself out just to gain fame and fortune, holding onto his values instead.

Examples

  • They whore themselves out for the Baton Rouge politicians and have for years.

    Blog text (22)

  • Dear PR people, I will totally whore myself out for cereal.

    Blog text (32)

  • "You said you weren't going to whore yourself out," he says as Gollum, then argues with himself.

    Blog text (6)

  • I used it—to "whore myself out"—

    Fiction book (2001)

  • Yeah, if it were not for this great country, Andy Sullivan would have to whore himself out for Viagra... or those AIDS drugs he lives on.

    Blog text (6)

  • Meyer is asking for the criticism; she is whoring out her novel as much as she can. I saw a twilight umbrella...

    Blog text (22)

  • My point is you got about two, maybe three more years of whoring yourself out before a whole new batch of younger and prettier whores comes rolling in through that front door.

    Precious Cargo (2016)

  • Many artists feel like they have to whore themselves out to get noticed in today's competitive market.

  • During the audition, she felt she was whoring herself out for attention rather than showcasing her talent.

Synonyms

to sell out
vsto whore oneself out
  • Informal
55 6.8

To give up your beliefs for money or personal gain

involves compromising dignity for money or publicity seen as degrading
to whore
vsto whore oneself out
  • Offensive
16 9.9

To sell yourself for money or personal gain

focuses on losing dignity for money or publicity in a degrading way
to lower oneself
vsto whore oneself out
  • Informal
4 6.5

Act in a way that makes people respect you less

involves losing dignity for personal gain not just falling below standards
to whore up
vsto whore oneself out
  • Offensive
1 9.9

To act in a way that goes against your values to get money or attention

compromises dignity for money or publicity rather than merely promoting
to sell one's soul
vsto whore oneself out
  • Informal
8.3

Act badly to get money, power, or success

focuses specifically on sacrificing dignity for money or public attention
to whore your talent
vsto whore oneself out
  • Offensive
9.9

To use your skill for money in ways that feel wrong or cheap

compromises personal dignity or principles more broadly for money or publicity

Antonyms

integrity
132 4.4

Being whole and not broken, for example in a building or file

How Compromised

to whore oneself out
  • Offensive
2 9.9
to sell out
  • Informal
55 6.8
to pander
58 8.6
to compromise
294 5.0

Surface Forms

whore oneself out infinitive
whoring oneself out present participle
whores oneself out third person singular
whored oneself out past
whored oneself out past participle

Morphology

whore + oneself + out

The literal constituents — 'whore' (to prostitute or sell oneself), reflexive 'oneself', and the particle 'out' — signal a metaphor of selling oneself, so a learner who knows the words can likely infer the general idea of compromising dignity for gain. However, the expression is derogatory, culturally marked and uses a prostitution metaphor and particle semantics that are not fully literal, so the precise evaluative and social nuance is not entirely predictable without exposure.

Etymology

Whore oneself out may come from the image of someone selling oneself as a whore, literally trading their body for money. So today it means 'to give up your principles or dignity for money or fame'.