What Does โCrowd sb outโ Mean?
โCrowd sb outโ means to push someone out of a place or situation by being too many or taking up too much space or attention.
Introduction
The phrase โcrowd sb outโ is a common phrasal verb in English used to describe situations where one person or group forces another to leave or lose their position because they take up too much space, attention, or resources. Understanding the crowd sb out meaning helps learners use it naturally in conversations, especially when talking about physical spaces, social settings, or competitive environments. This phrase is often used in both formal and informal contexts, making it a useful expression for English learners to master.
Quick Info Box
- Phrasal verb: crowd somebody out
- Type: Transitive
- Level: B2
- Short meaning: To push someone out by being too many or taking too much space or attention
Structure (Grammar Rules)
โCrowd sb outโ is a transitive phrasal verb and is inseparable. This means you cannot place the object between the verb and the particle.
Correct pattern: crowd + somebody + out
Incorrect pattern: crowd + out + somebody
How to Use โCrowd sb outโ?
You use โcrowd sb outโ when you want to express that someone or something is forced out because of too many people or things taking up space or attention. It can be used in a physical sense (like people in a room) or more abstractly (such as ideas or competitors).
For example, you might say: โThe new stores crowded out the small local shops,โ meaning the small shops lost business because of the many new stores.
Examples
- The tourists crowded out the locals at the beach during the holiday season.
- Sometimes big companies crowd out smaller businesses in the market.
- She felt crowded out by her more confident classmates in the group project.
- In large cities, affordable housing is often crowded out by expensive developments.
- Crowd sb out in a sentence: The loud voices of the crowd crowded out the speakerโs message.
Common Mistakes
- Incorrect: The students crowded out in the classroom.
- Correct: The students crowded out the others in the classroom.
- Incorrect: She crowded out the others in the conversation.
- Correct: She crowded the others out in the conversation.
Differences / Synonyms
Crowd sb out vs. Push sb out: โPush sb outโ usually implies force or deliberate action, while โcrowd sb outโ suggests being overwhelmed by numbers or presence.
Crowd sb out vs. Shut sb out: โShut sb outโ means to exclude someone deliberately, while โcrowd sb outโ is more about being overwhelmed or displaced by size or quantity.
Common Collocations
- crowd people out
- crowd small businesses out
- crowd competitors out
- crowd local shops out
- crowd others out
Related Phrasal Verbs
Here are related phrasal verbs of crowd sb out:
Real-life Dialogue
Anna: Have you noticed how the new cafรฉ is always full? It really crowds out the old bakery nearby.
Ben: Yes, the bakery is losing customers because the cafรฉ attracts so many people.
Anna: Exactly. The cafรฉโs popularity is crowding the bakery out of the neighborhood.
Practice
Choose the correct sentence:
- a) The new mall crowded out the small shops in the area.
- b) The new mall crowded the small shops out in the area.
- c) The new mall crowded out in the small shops area.
Answer: Both a) and b) are correct because the object can come after the phrasal verb or between the verb and the particle if the object is a pronoun (e.g., โcrowded them outโ).
FAQs
- Q: Is โcrowd sb outโ formal or informal?
A: It can be used in both formal and informal contexts.
- Q: Can โcrowd sb outโ be used for ideas?
A: Yes, it can describe ideas or opinions being ignored because of others.
- Q: Is โcrowd outโ separable?
A: No, โcrowd sb outโ is inseparable; you cannot place the object between โcrowdโ and โout.โ
- Q: What is a synonym for โcrowd sb outโ?
A: โPush sb outโ or โexclude sbโ are similar but may have different nuances.
- Q: Can it be used in passive voice?
A: Yes, for example, โThe small shops were crowded out by big stores.โ
