stock out

Meanings

1. 1nouncountable

   A situation in which a shop or warehouse has run out of a product that customers want to buy.

   Grammar: Countable, often written as one word or with a hyphen: a stock-out, several stock-outs.

   Patterns

   • a stock out of something
   • a stock out on something

   A stock out of winter coats cost the store thousands in lost sales.

   The manager tracks every stock out to see which items need larger orders.

   Customers left disappointed after a stock out of the new phone.

2. 2verbphrasal verbinformal

   To run out of an item that is normally kept available for sale.

   Grammar: Usually describes the store or item running out: the shelf stocked out.

   Patterns

   • stock out of something

   We stocked out of bread by noon on Saturday.

   If we stock out of key parts, the production line stops.

Word forms

Common combinations

avoid a stock out

Good forecasting helps avoid a stock out during busy weeks.

risk of a stock out

There is a risk of a stock out before the holiday.

stock out rate

The stock out rate fell after the new supplier arrived.

cause a stock out

A shipping delay caused a stock out of fresh fruit.

suffer a stock out

The shop suffered a stock out of bottled water during the heatwave.

Synonyms and how they differ

shortage

Shortage can describe a general lack of something, while stock out is about a shelf or store being empty.

sell-out

A sell-out stresses that everything sold because of demand, while a stock out stresses lost sales from lack of stock.

out of stock

Out of stock is the everyday adjective phrase; stock out is the business noun.

Opposites

Word family

stock noun

goods kept for sale

stockout noun

closed spelling of the same term

stockpile noun

a large supply kept for future use

overstock verb

to keep too much of an item

Commonly confused: stock out or out of stock?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “stock out”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

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