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Synonyms

cancel out

Idioms  

  1. Neutralize the effect of, offset, render void. For example, Anne's kindness to her neighbor could not cancel out her irritability. The verb cancel was used in this way by itself from the late 1400s; out was added in the early 1900s.

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

It recognized that improvement through treatment should not cancel out evidence of injury.

From Slate • Feb. 19, 2026

It can also cancel out disturbances that affect all of the atoms in the same way.

From Science Daily • Jan. 26, 2026

The German DAX trades flat after a record close Friday as losses for banks and automakers cancel out gains for defense companies.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 12, 2026

If they moved to new relative highs, that would cancel out the current buy signals.

From MarketWatch • Dec. 18, 2025

The virtual particle/antiparticle pairs of spin Vi and Vi would have negative energy, and so would tend to cancel out the positive energy of the spin 2, 1, and 0 virtual pairs.

From "A Brief History of Time: And Other Essays" by Stephen Hawking

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.