spin-out

or spin·out

[ spin-out ]

noun

1. the spinning out of control into a rotating skid of a car or other vehicle.

spin out

verb

1. to extend or protract (a story, etc) by including superfluous detail; prolong
2. to spend or pass (time)
3. to contrive to cause (money, etc) to last as long as possible

noun

1. a spinning skid in a car that causes it to run off the road

Word History and Origins

Origin of spin-out¹

First recorded in 1950–55; noun use of verb phrase spin out

Example Sentences

When officers from the Anaheim Police Department arrived, they learned that a black Dodge Charger had spun out of control into the crowd, hitting two 19-year-old onlookers.

From Los Angeles Times

Now, a startup spun out of UC Berkeley and the Department of Energy’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory hopes to change that.

From Los Angeles Times

That is how wars spin out of control.

From BBC

England were spun out by Pakistan to lose the second Test by 152 runs, setting up a series decider in Rawalpindi next week.

From BBC

Continuation of the war in Ukraine markedly increases the likelihood of spinning out from a regional to a Europe-wide to a nuclear war.

From Salon

Related Words

• cover
• develop
• draw
• expand
• fill
• go
• grow
• lengthen
• open
• pull
• reach
• run
• span
• spread
• strain
• swell
• unfold
• widen