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Phrase Meanings » top out
What does "top out" mean?
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Complete the top portion of a building, as in They were scheduled to top out the dome next week. This idiom was first recorded in 1834.
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Fill up a ship or complete its cargo, as in The ship was topped out with scrap iron. This idiom was first recorded in 1940.
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Cease rising, as in Interest rates topped out at 10 percent. [Second half of 1900s]
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Retire just as one becomes very successful, as in He decided that at sixty it was time to top out. [Colloquial; second half of 1900s]