as in explaining
to make plain or understandable
the dating applicant spelled out exactly what she wanted in a man
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Recent Examples of spelling out
And Pearl, while making his team’s case Thursday, unwittingly did a fine job of spelling out the ills of expansion as well.
—
Joe Rexrode, New York Times, 13 Mar. 2026
Trump castigated the court for not spelling out what happens to the tens of billions of dollars the government has already collected.
—Maureen Groppe, USA Today, 20 Feb. 2026
The job qualifications are typically lean, spelling out a handful of core expectations.
—Preston Fore, Fortune, 18 Feb. 2026
The timeline is worth spelling out.
—Hanna Wickes, Miami Herald, 17 Feb. 2026
Volunteers recently took city representatives to the area to see the situation for themselves in the hope the city will install official signs spelling out the rules for bicyclists, including speed limits and the message that off-roading is prohibited.
—Ashley MacKin Solomon, San Diego Union-Tribune, 5 Feb. 2026
The governor, who has emerged as a likely candidate for the 2028 presidential race, spent much of his hour-long speech spelling out the triumphs of his administration and extolling the values of California.
—Kate Wolffe, Sacbee.com, 9 Jan. 2026
At the same time, Xinjiang, as an obvious hotspot, hardly needs spelling out.
—Jasmin Malik Chua, Sourcing Journal, 29 Oct. 2025
By statute, districts must send voters a mailer spelling out those particulars.
—Frederick Melo, Twin Cities, 28 Oct. 2025
Joe Rexrode, New York Times, 13 Mar. 2026
Trump castigated the court for not spelling out what happens to the tens of billions of dollars the government has already collected.
—Maureen Groppe, USA Today, 20 Feb. 2026
The job qualifications are typically lean, spelling out a handful of core expectations.
—Preston Fore, Fortune, 18 Feb. 2026
The timeline is worth spelling out.
—Hanna Wickes, Miami Herald, 17 Feb. 2026
Volunteers recently took city representatives to the area to see the situation for themselves in the hope the city will install official signs spelling out the rules for bicyclists, including speed limits and the message that off-roading is prohibited.
—Ashley MacKin Solomon, San Diego Union-Tribune, 5 Feb. 2026
The governor, who has emerged as a likely candidate for the 2028 presidential race, spent much of his hour-long speech spelling out the triumphs of his administration and extolling the values of California.
—Kate Wolffe, Sacbee.com, 9 Jan. 2026
At the same time, Xinjiang, as an obvious hotspot, hardly needs spelling out.
—Jasmin Malik Chua, Sourcing Journal, 29 Oct. 2025
By statute, districts must send voters a mailer spelling out those particulars.
—Frederick Melo, Twin Cities, 28 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for spelling out
Verb
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Gassert disagreed with Dominguez’s decision to kick Oliveros out of the house, explaining that an agent’s morality shouldn’t be conditional.—
Tyler Carmona,
Miami Herald,
11 Mar. 2026
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Now, the Connecticut state legislature is moving to control the curriculum of all schools in the state without explaining why politicians know better than parents how to educate their children.—
Nicholas Tampio,
Hartford Courant,
10 Mar. 2026
Verb
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The film ends up illustrating the limitations of the Storkels’ affection for re-enactments and their general interest in stories that are outlandish enough to be thrilling and bloodless enough to be treated with some measure of whimsy.—
Daniel Fienberg,
HollywoodReporter,
13 Mar. 2026
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But a concurrent image release illustrating the new Artemis framework showed the program's Orion crew capsule flying on a vehicle that was unmistakably neither the ICPS or EUS.—
Josh Dinner,
Space.com,
10 Mar. 2026
Verb
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And by the subsequent extensive visit at Massachusetts General, where her father saw 14 doctors in three days, something clarifying happened and changed her perspective.—
Kansas City Star,
Kansas City Star,
15 Mar. 2026
-
Board members voted unanimously to update the terms of the negotiating agreement during the March 10 meeting, mainly clarifying deadlines for site studies and other analysis, but with no assurance that the city’s November deadline will be met.—
Luke Harold,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
15 Mar. 2026
Verb
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The system has progressed through multiple stages of technical evaluation and validation, demonstrating its potential for operational use in counter-UAV missions.—
Jijo Malayil,
Interesting Engineering,
12 Mar. 2026
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Results from a handful of studies were middling — and then the largest study demonstrating its efficacy was retracted in January.—
O. Rose Broderick,
STAT,
10 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
For getting up the hill and getting across the flatter sections.—
Outside Online,
Outside Online,
7 Jan. 2026
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The issue has been discussed within Congress for years and has received bipartisan support, but obstacles have repeatedly stopped the effort from getting across the finish line.—
Jared Gans,
The Hill,
11 Dec. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Spelling out.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/spelling%20out. Accessed 18 Mar. 2026.
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