Phrase · C2 · Neutral · decisions, investigations, and practical limits
rule something out
rool sum-thing OWT Stress out; rule has the same vowel as blue.
Remove someone or something from consideration as a possible explanation, choice, or candidate; also, make something impossible.
isključiti neku mogućnost; odbaciti nekoga ili nešto kao opciju; onemogućiti
Use it
The test ruled out a faulty battery, but we still need to check the cable.
One explanation is eliminated without proving another.
Our budget rules out hiring a second designer this month.
A practical constraint makes an option unavailable; use -ing after out.
Build the sentence
rule out + possibility/option · rule + object + out · rule it out · rule out + -ing
Memory scene
A puzzle solver sets a round piece aside because the gap is star-shaped. That candidate is eliminated; the remaining pieces still need checking.
Watch out
With a pronoun, say rule it out, not rule out it. Cannot rule out means a possibility remains, not that it is likely or proven. Use rule out doing, not rule out to do.
Nearby language
Can mean remove a possibility or candidate, but also has broader senses involving access or membership.
Can mean remove an option from consideration, but can also mean remove a problem entirely.
Means reduce the range of possibilities, often by ruling individual options out.
Make it yours
Računar se ne uključuje. Baterija je provereno ispravna, ali kabl još niste ispitali.