as in excludes
to prevent the participation, consideration, or inclusion of
another loss would rule them out of the tournament
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Recent Examples of rules out
And to me, that’s very alien to imagine that the Universe could be not following some laws, that there isn’t some set of rules out there that determines what really happens?
—
Big Think, 29 Oct. 2025
None of this rules out an agreement on Chinese investments in the US as part of a broader trade deal.
—semafor.com, 2 Oct. 2025
That rules out fanciful speculation that the likes of Timothée Chalamet, Glen Powell, Austin Butler, Jacob Elordi and others who don’t hail from UK shores are in the running.
—Baz Bamigboye, Deadline, 24 Sep. 2025
Well, that rules out a whole lot of major villains that Reeves may have adapted, after previously doing high profile ones like The Riddler, Catwoman (well, sometimes-villain) and the all-time great Colin Farrell Penguin.
—Paul Tassi, Forbes.com, 18 Sep. 2025
This approach helps untangle cause from coincidence – and rules out confounding factors better than with observational studies.
—New Atlas, 12 Aug. 2025
Big Think, 29 Oct. 2025
None of this rules out an agreement on Chinese investments in the US as part of a broader trade deal.
—semafor.com, 2 Oct. 2025
That rules out fanciful speculation that the likes of Timothée Chalamet, Glen Powell, Austin Butler, Jacob Elordi and others who don’t hail from UK shores are in the running.
—Baz Bamigboye, Deadline, 24 Sep. 2025
Well, that rules out a whole lot of major villains that Reeves may have adapted, after previously doing high profile ones like The Riddler, Catwoman (well, sometimes-villain) and the all-time great Colin Farrell Penguin.
—Paul Tassi, Forbes.com, 18 Sep. 2025
This approach helps untangle cause from coincidence – and rules out confounding factors better than with observational studies.
—New Atlas, 12 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for rules out
Verb
-
The House legislative package, however, excludes some of the most ambitious reforms in the Senate version, such as a pilot program to incentivize localities to liberalize land-use rules using Community Development Block Grant funding.—
Zach Halaschak,
The Washington Examiner,
10 Feb. 2026
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That excludes China Vanke, once one of the country’s largest developers, which, late last year, asked to delay repayment on some of its debt.—
Evelyn Cheng,
CNBC,
9 Feb. 2026
Verb
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The gap between freedom of speech and the press in Hong Kong and mainland China, where the ruling Communist Party bans public dissent, has grown much smaller.—
Kanis Leung,
Los Angeles Times,
10 Feb. 2026
-
One, a law that bans disruptions at houses of worship.—
Dana Taylor,
USA Today,
9 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Those lots can cost more, however, and the state permit San Diego has for H Barracks currently bars daytime parking.—
Blake Nelson,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
11 Feb. 2026
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The bill bars local governments from imposing several common zoning restrictions on the construction of ADUs — like requiring homeowners to live on the property or to increase parking space on their land.—
Max Klaver,
Miami Herald,
7 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Despite the growing popularity of compact electric tools, the FixBuddy Ratchet takes a fully manual approach – no batteries required, which eliminates the risk of running out of power in the middle of a job.—
Maryna Holovnova,
New Atlas,
13 Feb. 2026
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At a depth of one mile, a column of water naturally provides the 160 atmospheres of pressure required for the reactor to function, which eliminates the need for massive and expensive surface pressure vessels.—
Aman Tripathi,
Interesting Engineering,
11 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Zofran, the brand name for ondansetron, is a prescription anti-nausea medication that blocks serotonin receptors in your gut and brain that, in turn, prevents them from triggering nausea and vomiting.—
Julia Ries Wexler,
SELF,
9 Feb. 2026
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Williams said one of his goals is to change the state law that prevents people who have been convicted of felonies from holding office.—
Evy Lewis,
Chicago Tribune,
9 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Consistent with state law, Austin ISD prohibits employees from encouraging walkouts or protests, spokesman JJ Maldonado said.—
Keri Heath,
Austin American Statesman,
5 Feb. 2026
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The Fort Lauderdale City Commission said the ordinance now prohibits the consumption of open alcohol containers and also bans outdoor alcohol sales in those SEDs.—
Steven Yablonski,
CBS News,
4 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Rules out.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rules%20out. Accessed 15 Feb. 2026.
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