The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:
Sort \Sort\, n. [F. sorie (cf. It. sorta, sorte), from L. sors,
sorti, a lot, part, probably akin to serere to connect. See
Series, and cf. Assort, Consort, Resort, Sorcery,
Sort lot.]
1. A kind or species; any number or collection of individual
persons or things characterized by the same or like
qualities; a class or order; as, a sort of men; a sort of
horses; a sort of trees; a sort of poems.
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2. Manner; form of being or acting.
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Which for my part I covet to perform,
In sort as through the world I did proclaim.
--Spenser.
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Flowers, in such sort worn, can neither be smelt nor
seen well by those that wear them. --Hooker.
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I'll deceive you in another sort. --Shak.
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To Adam in what sort
Shall I appear? --Milton.
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I shall not be wholly without praise, if in some
sort I have copied his style. --Dryden.
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3. Condition above the vulgar; rank. [Obs.] --Shak.
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4. A chance group; a company of persons who happen to be
together; a troop; also, an assemblage of animals. [Obs.]
"A sort of shepherds." --Spenser. "A sort of steers."
--Spenser. "A sort of doves." --Dryden. "A sort of
rogues." --Massinger.
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A boy, a child, and we a sort of us,
Vowed against his voyage. --Chapman.
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5. A pair; a set; a suit. --Johnson.
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6. pl. (Print.) Letters, figures, points, marks, spaces, or
quadrats, belonging to a case, separately considered.
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Out of sorts (Print.), with some letters or sorts of type
deficient or exhausted in the case or font; hence,
colloquially, out of order; ill; vexed; disturbed.
To run upon sorts (Print.), to use or require a greater
number of some particular letters, figures, or marks than
the regular proportion, as, for example, in making an
index.
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Syn: Kind; species; rank; condition.
Usage: Sort, Kind. Kind originally denoted things of the
same family, or bound together by some natural
affinity; and hence, a class. Sort signifies that
which constitutes a particular lot of parcel, not
implying necessarily the idea of affinity, but of mere
assemblage. the two words are now used to a great
extent interchangeably, though sort (perhaps from its
original meaning of lot) sometimes carries with it a
slight tone of disparagement or contempt, as when we
say, that sort of people, that sort of language.
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:
Out \Out\ (out), adv. [OE. out, ut, oute, ute, AS. [=u]t, and
[=u]te, [=u]tan, fr. [=u]t; akin to D. uit, OS. [=u]t, G.
aus, OHG. [=u]z, Icel. [=u]t, Sw. ut, Dan. ud, Goth. ut, Skr.
ud. [root]198. Cf. About, But, prep., Carouse, Utter,
a.]
In its original and strict sense, out means from the interior
of something; beyond the limits or boundary of somethings; in
a position or relation which is exterior to something; --
opposed to in or into. The something may be expressed
after of, from, etc. (see Out of, below); or, if not
expressed, it is implied; as, he is out; or, he is out of the
house, office, business, etc.; he came out; or, he came out
from the ship, meeting, sect, party, etc. Out is used in a
variety of applications, as:
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1. Away; abroad; off; from home, or from a certain, or a
usual, place; not in; not in a particular, or a usual,
place; as, the proprietor is out, his team was taken out.
Opposite of in. "My shoulder blade is out." --Shak.
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He hath been out (of the country) nine years.
--Shak.
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2. Beyond the limits of concealment, confinement, privacy,
constraint, etc., actual or figurative; hence, not in
concealment, constraint, etc., in, or into, a state of
freedom, openness, disclosure, publicity, etc.; a matter
of public knowledge; as, the sun shines out; he laughed
out, to be out at the elbows; the secret has leaked out,
or is out; the disease broke out on his face; the book is
out.
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Leaves are out and perfect in a month. --Bacon.
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She has not been out [in general society] very long.
--H. James.
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3. Beyond the limit of existence, continuance, or supply; to
the end; completely; hence, in, or into, a condition of
extinction, exhaustion, completion; as, the fuel, or the
fire, has burned out; that style is on the way out. "Hear
me out." --Dryden.
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Deceitful men shall not live out half their days.
--Ps. iv. 23.
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When the butt is out, we will drink water. --Shak.
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4. Beyond possession, control, or occupation; hence, in, or
into, a state of want, loss, or deprivation; -- used of
office, business, property, knowledge, etc.; as, the
Democrats went out and the Whigs came in; he put his money
out at interest. "Land that is out at rack rent." --Locke.
"He was out fifty pounds." --Bp. Fell.
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I have forgot my part, and I am out. --Shak.
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5. Beyond the bounds of what is true, reasonable, correct,
proper, common, etc.; in error or mistake; in a wrong or
incorrect position or opinion; in a state of disagreement,
opposition, etc.; in an inharmonious relation. "Lancelot
and I are out." --Shak.
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Wicked men are strangely out in the calculating of
their own interest. --South.
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Very seldom out, in these his guesses. --Addison.
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6. Not in the position to score in playing a game; not in the
state or turn of the play for counting or gaining scores.
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7. Out of fashion; unfashionable; no longer in current vogue;
unpopular.
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Note: Out is largely used in composition as a prefix, with
the same significations that it has as a separate word;
as outbound, outbreak, outbuilding, outcome, outdo,
outdoor, outfield. See also the first Note under
Over, adv.
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Day in, day out, from the beginning to the limit of each of
several days; day by day; every day.
Out at, Out in, Out on, etc., elliptical phrases, that
to which out refers as a source, origin, etc., being
omitted; as, out (of the house and) at the barn; out (of
the house, road, fields, etc., and) in the woods.
Three fishers went sailing out into the west,
Out into the west, as the sun went down. --C.
Kingsley.
Note: In these lines after out may be understood, "of the
harbor," "from the shore," "of sight," or some similar
phrase. The complete construction is seen in the
saying: "Out of the frying pan into the fire."
Out from, a construction similar to out of (below). See
Of and From.
Out of, a phrase which may be considered either as composed
of an adverb and a preposition, each having its
appropriate office in the sentence, or as a compound
preposition. Considered as a preposition, it denotes, with
verbs of movement or action, from the interior of; beyond
the limit: from; hence, origin, source, motive, departure,
separation, loss, etc.; -- opposed to in or into; also
with verbs of being, the state of being derived, removed,
or separated from. Examples may be found in the phrases
below, and also under Vocabulary words; as, out of breath;
out of countenance.
Out of cess, beyond measure, excessively. --Shak.
Out of character, unbecoming; improper.
Out of conceit with, not pleased with. See under Conceit.
Out of date, not timely; unfashionable; antiquated.
Out of door, Out of doors, beyond the doors; from the
house; not inside a building; in, or into, the open air;
hence, figuratively, shut out; dismissed. See under
Door, also, Out-of-door, Outdoor, Outdoors, in the
Vocabulary. "He 's quality, and the question's out of
door," --Dryden.
Out of favor, disliked; under displeasure.
Out of frame, not in correct order or condition; irregular;
disarranged. --Latimer.
Out of hand, immediately; without delay or preparation;
without hesitation or debate; as, to dismiss a suggestion
out of hand. "Ananias . . . fell down and died out of
hand." --Latimer.
Out of harm's way, beyond the danger limit; in a safe
place.
Out of joint, not in proper connection or adjustment;
unhinged; disordered. "The time is out of joint." --Shak.
Out of mind, not in mind; forgotten; also, beyond the limit
of memory; as, time out of mind.
Out of one's head, beyond commanding one's mental powers;
in a wandering state mentally; delirious. [Colloq.]
Out of one's time, beyond one's period of minority or
apprenticeship.
Out of order, not in proper order; disarranged; in
confusion.
Out of place, not in the usual or proper place; hence, not
proper or becoming.
Out of pocket, in a condition of having expended or lost
more money than one has received.
Out of print, not in market, the edition printed being
exhausted; -- said of books, pamphlets, etc.
Out of the question, beyond the limits or range of
consideration; impossible to be favorably considered.
Out of reach, beyond one's reach; inaccessible.
Out of season, not in a proper season or time; untimely;
inopportune.
Out of sorts, wanting certain things; unsatisfied; unwell;
unhappy; cross. See under Sort, n.
Out of temper, not in good temper; irritated; angry.
Out of time, not in proper time; too soon, or too late.
Out of time, not in harmony; discordant; hence, not in an
agreeing temper; fretful.
Out of twist, Out of winding, or Out of wind, not in
warped condition; perfectly plain and smooth; -- said of
surfaces.
Out of use, not in use; unfashionable; obsolete.
Out of the way.
(a) On one side; hard to reach or find; secluded.
(b) Improper; unusual; wrong.
Out of the woods, not in a place, or state, of obscurity or
doubt; free from difficulty or perils; safe. [Colloq.]
Out to out, from one extreme limit to another, including
the whole length, breadth, or thickness; -- applied to
measurements.
Out West, in or towards, the West; specifically, in some
Western State or Territory. [U. S.]
To come out, To cut out, To fall out, etc. See under
Come, Cut, Fall, etc.
To make out See to make out under make, v. t. and v.
i..
To put out of the way, to kill; to destroy.
Week in, week out. See Day in, day out (above).
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Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0:
51 Moby Thesaurus words for "out of sorts":
acid, ailing, angry, bad, below par, caustic, cheerless, corrosive,
critically ill, discontented, down, faint, faintish, feeling awful,
feeling evil, feeling faint, feeling something terrible, grim,
humorless, ill, in bad humor, in danger, indisposed, infestive,
joyless, laid low, mirthless, miserable, mortally ill,
not quite right, off-color, out of humor, out of temper,
pleasureless, rocky, seedy, sick, sick unto death, sickish, sorry,
sorryish, taken ill, uncheerful, uncheery, under the weather,
unhappy, unjoyful, unmirthful, unsmiling, unwell, wretched