let out — allow someone to leave a place
phrasal verbB1IELTS 5+neutralcommon
To allow someone to leave a room, building, or other place by opening a door or gate.
Say it like a native
Textbook Could you permit the dog to exit into the garden?
Native Can you let the dog out?
'Let out' is the everyday verb for letting someone or something leave. 'Permit to exit' is formal.
Pattern: let + object + out
In use
- Can you let the dog out before you leave for work?daily life
- At my old school, the teachers wouldn’t let us out of the classroom until the bell rang.IELTS speaking
Common mistake
✗ Please let out me, I'm trapped.
✓ Please let me out, I'm trapped.
With a pronoun, the object goes in the middle — 'let me out'.
Common collocations
let + out— the dog out, let me out, the air out, early
Don't confuse it
'Let out' is about allowing someone to leave; 'let in' is the opposite—allowing someone to enter.
Related
- let out (make a sound (e.g. a scream, sigh)) — Another meaning of 'let out' is 'make a sound (e.g. a scream, sigh)'; compare the examples to keep the meanings separate.