# feel out

CEFR B2 · Phrasal verb

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/feel-out
Updated: 2026-10-22

## Definition

to try to find out what someone thinks or what a situation is like before you make a decision. You do this carefully to see if your idea will be successful.

For teachers: To investigate or explore a situation or person's opinion cautiously and indirectly before committing to a course of action. Transitive and often separable.

## Examples

- I want to feel out the boss before I ask for a raise.
- Before proposing the new project to the whole team, she decided to feel out her manager's opinion in private.
- The diplomat spent several weeks feeling out the opposition's willingness to negotiate before any formal peace talks were officially announced.

## Pitfalls

- Not "I need to feel out about the situation." but "I need to feel out the situation." — The verb is transitive and takes the object directly without the preposition 'about'.

## Usage notes

- This verb is separable, meaning you can put the object between 'feel' and 'out'.
- Teaching tip: Compare with the idiom 'test the waters'; 'feel out' is often used when the object is a person whose reaction you are trying to predict.

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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.