out of place
74
3.5
- idiom
- At the formal dinner, he felt out of place in his casual attire.
- feel out of place
- seem out of place
- look out of place
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Watch on YouTubeYou feel out of place and confused.
- You feel out of place and confused.
- So will you come so he don't feel out of place?
- Do you understand why libertarians feel out of place among Republic?
- So I actually think this comment, while it's funny, is out of place.
- I was completely immersed in it, but at some point I started feeling out of place, almost like I didn't belong.
- And part of it is due to the fact that the Kargish Princess seems totally out of place within the court of Hovnor.
- Because you know that one word out of place and it could be seen as encouraging him to do it obviously wouldn't mean it to be.
- Also, they refer to this party as a soiree many times, and this French neologism seems way out of place.
- Being at home, working at home for people who feel out of place in the office environment has probably also been a great thing for them in some ways.
- Well, because what he was doing was so clearly out of place.
Examples
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When I walked into the art gallery, I couldn't help but feel out of place among the sophisticated crowd.
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I was completely immersed in it, but at some point I started feeling out of place, almost like I didn't belong.
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You know, you seem really out of place in the video game world.
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- I feel a little out of place.
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I saw him come in the office once, but he looked out of place.
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Her look made me think that we were out of place in that room.
Fiction book (1990) -
You feel out of place and confused.
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A guy like me would look out of place on an assembly line.
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It's just sometimes I feel a little out of place being the only non-parent in the group.
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Even Humphrey himself must have felt more than a little out of place in that unaccustomed role.
Academic text (1992)
Synonyms
373
3.3
Difficult or inconvenient, often causing embarrassment
189
7.2
Feeling left out of a group or activity
70
3.6
Feeling sad because others do not include you
30
6.8
Feeling alone and not part of a group or society
13
7.4
Not fitting with the things around it and looking strange
7
8.1
Feeling left out and watching others take part
2
7.0
To be out of place among the people around you
1
5.1
Feeling confused or lost about your place among others
1
9.9
Not suitable for a situation and therefore not important to the topic
1
7.5
Not comfortable or confident in a new situation
Looks out of place and stands out among similar things
Antonyms
How Appropriate
229
3.8
937
3.5
392
2.5
102
2.7
74
3.5
367
3.7
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'not appropriate or not fitting' is directly derivable from the constituents: 'out' (not in), the preposition 'of' linking, and 'place' (position or context), yielding 'not in the right place.' This is a common, compositional English pattern with clear cross-linguistic equivalents (e.g. Spanish 'fuera de lugar'), so a B1 learner who knows the words will readily infer the meaning.
Etymology
Out of place may come from the simple image of something clearly out of its place, like an old chair in a very modern living room or a person in jeans at a formal dinner. That's why it means 'not fitting in' or 'feeling uncomfortable' in a situation.