sound out — discreetly gauge opinion
phrasal verbC1IELTS 7+neutraloccasional
to carefully ask someone what they think about something, often to find out their opinion or intentions without making your own position clear
Say it like a native
Textbook I will discreetly ascertain their views before proceeding.
Native Let me sound them out first.
'Sound out' compactly means quietly test someone's opinion; the formal version is stiff.
Pattern: sound someone out (about/on something)
In use
- Before announcing the new policy, the manager sounded out a few team members to see how they’d react.work
- In my previous job, I often had to sound out colleagues before suggesting major changes, just to make sure everyone was on board.IELTS speaking
Common mistake
✗ I sounded out about the idea to my boss.
✓ I sounded my boss out about the idea.
You sound OUT the person, ABOUT the idea — the person is the object.
Common collocations
sound out + person— a few colleagues, the team, him, about it
Don't confuse it
This sense is different from the literal use of 'sound out' (e.g., in teaching children to pronounce words), as here it means to discreetly check someone’s views or intentions.