# out to lunch

idiom

Source: https://englishreference.com/idiom/out-to-lunch
Updated: 2026-08-10

## Meaning

Clueless, inattentive, or careless.

## Examples

- He's completely out to lunch about the new rules.
- The manager was out to lunch during the meeting and missed all the important details.
- While her colleagues scrambled to meet the deadline, she wandered through the day out to lunch, oblivious to the mounting pressure around her.

---

From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.