out of place

From out of (preposition) + place (noun).[1][2]

• (Received Pronunciation, General American) IPA^(key): /ˌaʊt‿əv ˈpleɪs/, /ˌaʊtə-/

• Audio (AU)

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out of place (idiomatic)

1. Not in the proper arrangement or situation.

   Synonyms: dislocated, dystopic, ectopic, heterotopic, malpositioned, misplaced, out of keeping with

   Antonyms: in keeping with, in place

   No wonder I couldn’t find it—it was out of place.

   She came in out of the storm with not a hair out of place.

   Amongst all those horsey people I felt quite out of place.

   • 1915, Virginia Woolf, chapter VII, in The Voyage Out, London: The Hogarth Press, published 1949, →OCLC, page 105:

     A garden smoothly laid with turf, divided by thick hedges, with raised beds of bright flowers, such as we keep within walls in England, would have been out of place upon the side of this bare hill.

2. Inappropriate for the circumstances.

   Synonyms: unseemly; see also Thesaurus:unsuitable

   Antonyms: appropriate, seemly; see also Thesaurus:suitable

   That remark was out of place.

   • [1551, Thomas More, “The Fyrste Boke of the Communycacion of Raphaell Hythlodaye Concernynge the Best State of a Commen Wealthe”, in Raphe Robynson [i.e., Ralph Robinson], transl., A Fruteful, and Pleasaunt Worke of the Best State of a Publyque Weale, and of the Newe Yle Called Utopia: […], London: […] [Steven Mierdman for] Abraham Vele, […], →OCLC, signatures E.i., verso – E.ii., recto:

     [H]e ſo ſtudied with wordes & ſaynges brought furth ſo out of time & place to make ſporte and moue laughter, yͭ he himſelf was oftener laughed at thẽ his ieſtes were.]

   • 1687, [John Dryden], “The Third Part”, in The Hind and the Panther. A Poem, in Three Parts, 2nd edition, London: […] Jacob Tonson […], →OCLC, page 84:

     Bare lyes vvith bold affections they can face, / But dint of argument is out of place.

   • 1918, W[illiam] B[abington] Maxwell, chapter XXIV, in The Mirror and the Lamp, Indianapolis, Ind.: The Bobbs-Merrill Company, →OCLC, pages 198–199:

     All this was extraordinarily distasteful to Churchill. […] Never before had he felt such repulsion when the vicar displayed his characteristic bluntness or coarseness of speech. In the present connexion—or rather as a transition from the subject that started their conversation—such talk had been distressingly out of place.

   • 2017 November 14, Phil McNulty, “International Friendlies: England 0 – 0 Brazil”, in BBC Sport‎, archived from the original on 2023-02-27:

     [Marcus] Rashford showed the fearless streak [Gareth] Southgate so admires with his constant willingness to run at Brazil's defence with pace, even demonstrating on occasion footwork that would not have been out of place from members of England's illustrious opposition.

• out-of-place (adjective)
• out-of-placeness

• (inappropriate for the circumstances): atopic