What does shutout mean?
A shutout is a game or victory in which one team or player prevents the opponent from scoring at all. In baseball, for example, a pitcher who holds the other side scoreless for the entire game earns a shutout. The word can also function as an adjective, as in “shutout victory,” describing the game or result. It is understood primarily in sporting contexts, although it may refer more broadly to any contest in which one side scores nothing. The term conveys complete defensive control and, when used of a victory, emphasizes that the winner did not need to rely on the opponent scoring. A shutout is different from a scoreless draw: in a shutout, one side prevents the other from scoring, whereas in a draw both sides finish without scoring.
A game or victory in which the opposing team or player scores no points.
"The rookie pitcher threw a shutout in her first major-league appearance."
The term is especially common in team sports and in North American sports usage.
Denoting a game, victory, or performance in which the opponent scores no points.
"They celebrated a shutout win before the stadium crowd."
This attributive use is common in sports journalism, particularly in North America.
The plural is used for separate games, victories, or recorded shutout performances.
"The goalkeeper recorded three shutouts last season."
In sport, a shutout turns a contest into a zero-versus-something score—and every point belongs to the other side.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does shutout come from?
The word combines the ordinary English verb “shut” with the particle “out,” literally suggesting that something is kept shut out. Its earliest uses were associated with preventing an opponent from scoring, and the sporting sense became established in the late nineteenth century. The expression belongs to the same productive English pattern found in related words such as “shut-in” and “shutout,” and it reflects the broader development of English phrasal verbs into compound nouns.
Related word forms
How shutout is actually used
Most common in American sports, especially baseball, softball, football, hockey, and soccer contexts. British usage is also attested, but the term is especially associated with North American sports reporting.
Easily confused with shutout
As a noun, a shutout is a contest in which the opponent scores nothing; as an adjective, it describes that contest or the resulting victory.