leave out

not include someone or something

B1

What does "leave sb/sth out" mean?

To leave out something means to not include it when it should be there. For example, if you write a list of instructions but forget to mention one step, you have left that step out. It can also describe excluding a person — if a group of friends plans an event without telling you, you might feel left out. The omission can be deliberate (someone chose not to include it) or accidental (they forgot). This phrasal verb is useful in many situations: cooking, writing, editing, giving instructions, and talking about social situations.

Examples

How to use it

leave out + object

The most common pattern, used when the object is a longer noun phrase. The object comes after the particle.

The editor left out several important paragraphs from the final version.

leave + object + out

With short noun phrases or pronouns, the object is placed between 'leave' and 'out'. This is the most natural form with short objects.

She left her name out of the report by mistake.

leave + pronoun + out

When the object is a pronoun, it must always go between 'leave' and 'out' — it cannot follow the particle.

The recipe has seven steps — don't leave any of them out.

be left out (of + something)

The passive is very natural and is used to focus on what or who was omitted, often with 'of' to show what they were excluded from.

A few key facts were left out of the news article.

feel left out

This fixed pattern describes the feeling of being excluded from a group or activity. It is very common in everyday spoken English.

He felt left out when his colleagues went for lunch without inviting him.

Common Collocations

leave out a stepleave out detailsleave out an ingredientfeel left outleave out of the reportaccidentally leave out

Common Mistakes

Pronoun placement

When the object is a pronoun like 'it', 'them', or 'her', it must go between 'leave' and 'out'. Placing it after 'out' is ungrammatical.

✗ Don't leave out it when you write the summary.
✓ Don't leave it out when you write the summary.
Confusing 'leave out' with 'miss out on'

'Leave out' means to omit something or exclude someone. 'Miss out on' means to fail to enjoy or experience something good — it has a completely different meaning and structure.

✗ I left out the chance to get a free ticket because I didn't sign up in time.
✓ I missed out on the chance to get a free ticket because I didn't sign up in time.
Confusing omission with physical placement

'Leave out' can also mean placing something outside (e.g. leaving milk out on the counter), so make sure your sentence makes the meaning of omission clear from context.

Usage

This phrasal verb is neutral and works in both formal and informal contexts. The pattern 'feel left out' (meaning feeling excluded from a group) is very common in everyday spoken English and is worth learning as a fixed phrase.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does 'leave out' always mean someone did it on purpose?

No — 'leave out' can describe both deliberate and accidental omissions. You can say 'she deliberately left out that detail' or 'I accidentally left out a step'. The verb itself doesn't tell you which one, so you often add a word like 'accidentally' or 'deliberately' to make it clear.

Can I use 'leave out' in the present continuous, like 'I am leaving out'?

It's possible but sounds a little awkward in most situations. 'Leave out' is more naturally used in simple tenses like the simple past or simple present. You might hear the present continuous if someone is describing an ongoing process, such as 'I'm leaving out a lot of the background information to keep the report short', but it's not the most common choice.

Is 'leave it out!' the same as 'leave out' meaning omit?

No — in British English, 'Leave it out!' is a completely separate expression used as an exclamation, meaning 'stop it!' or showing that you don't believe something. It has nothing to do with omitting or excluding. Context will always make it clear which meaning is intended.

What kinds of things can I 'leave out'?

You can leave out a wide variety of things: a word, a step in instructions, an ingredient in a recipe, details in a report, a chapter in a book, or even a person from a group or conversation. The common idea is that something is missing from a place where it should or could have been included.

Is 'feel left out' a fixed expression, or can I change the words?

'Feel left out' is a very common, fixed pattern that it's worth learning as a whole phrase. You can change the tense of 'feel' — for example, 'felt left out', 'feels left out' — but 'left out' itself stays the same. It always describes the feeling of being excluded from a group or activity.

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