cop-out

(redirected from cop-outs)
Also found in: Thesaurus, Idioms.

cop-out

also cop·out (kŏp′out′)
n. Slang
1. A failure to fulfill a commitment or responsibility or to face a difficulty squarely.
2. A person who fails to fulfill a commitment or responsibility.
3. An excuse for inaction or evasion.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

cop′-out`



n.
1. an act or instance of copping out.
2. a person who cops out.
[1940–45]
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

cop-out

noun (Slang) pretence, dodge, pretext, fraud, alibi She said she was too upset to talk, but that was just a cop-out.
Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002
Translations

cop-out

[ˈkɒpaʊt] N → evasión f de responsabilidad
Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

cop-out

n (inf: = going back on sth) → Rückzieher m (inf); (= deliberate evasion) → Ausweichmanöver nt; this solution/translation is just a cop-out → diese Lösung/Übersetzung weicht dem Problem nur aus
Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007
References in periodicals archive ?
Meanwhile, the lyrics reference ministerial cop-outs, power-tripping egos and nothing really changing for the better
The new Stereophonics song that's a furious anti-Tory rant sparked by a murder outside Kelly Jones' house; The track blasts lying politicians, budgets cuts and the ever decreasing options for today's youth
By NEIL MOXLEY @neil_moxley ERIC DIER has claimed multi-million pound spending sprees are being used as 'crazy' cop-outs by Tottenham's title rivals.
Buy, buy culture doesn't mean saying hello to success; PREMIER LEAGUE WATFORD v SPURS TODAY, KO 4.00pm; DIER: CASH SPLURGE 'CRAZY'
ERIC DIER says multi-million pound spending sprees are being used as 'crazy' cop-outs by Tottenham's title rivals.
Spending PS300m to fix a big team that is playing badly is just an excuse and crazy; We have definitely matured and are in the right space mentally anything is possible now; SAYS SPURS STAR ERIC DIER
Footballers have a book of cop-outs they use to try to explain away mistakes.
Tommy Wrong; ST JOHNSTONE PLAYERS EXCUSED Saints gaffer usually calls it right but he was offside over car-share guys
But those who testified on the topic essentially described the opt-outs as cop-outs.
Board agrees to redefine class time
The best thing that can be done about the bad situation it creates is to bear it as best as you can and not make it any worse through panicky, damage-control efforts, such as making lame justifications and excuses and cop-outs for the faux pas, like the Malacanang rah-rah boys are doing.
What 'Bossing' needs are new cusswords
I've heard some cop-outs, but that pathetic prophecy puts them on a planetary trajectory with Uranus.
Nasty business for NHS
Over the years, Barefoot College has trained "drop-outs, cop-outs and wash-outs" (many of them illiterate) to become solar engineers, artisans, dentists and doctors in their own villages.
Bunker Roy, Globally Acclaimed Founder of Barefoot College, to Address the 14th Asian Forum on Corporate Social Responsibility (AFCSR) in Bangkok
Their best hope for securing what they call "radical reconciliation" and dodging the cop-outs of politicians who pretend to do the right thing and Christians who accept half-baked measures is scripture-based.
Allan Aubrey Boesak and Curtiss Paul DeYoung, Radical Reconciliation: Beyond Political Pietism and Christian Quietism
COP-OUTS LIKE YOU RATIONALIZE NEGLECTING OR SHORTCUTTING PREVENTIVE MAINTENANCE, BUT IN THE END YOU ONLY CHEAT YOURSELVES.
The Dr. Drill show
Words like 'variable', 'human factor', 'indeterminate inputs' are great cop-outs.
Other side of the mirror: I say, what did he say
It's time to apply the same rules from top to bottom: No bailouts, no handouts, and no cop-outs. An America built to last insists on responsibility from everybody," he said.
Obama counters GOP criticism on administration's energy policies