quite out of the running
Preserved but no longer current.
Meaning · English
Quite out of court, not worthy of consideration; like a horse which has been scratched for some race and so is not "in the running.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “quite out of the running” mean?
Quite out of court, not worthy of consideration; like a horse which has been scratched for some race and so is not "in the running.
Is “quite out of the running” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.