iron out

verb

ironed out; ironing out; irons out

transitive verb

1

: to make smooth or flat by or as if by pressing

2

: to resolve or work out a solution to

ironed out their differences

Examples of iron out in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

During the ship’s christening, reservations to the specialty dining restaurants were hard to come by due to technical issues and scheduling errors, which will hopefully be ironed out when the next group sets sail. — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 6 Oct. 2026

And the secondary seemed to iron out most of its communication problems. — Ryan Kartje, Los Angeles Times, 5 Oct. 2026

Infinite strata of complexity are ironed out of a spirit as brilliant and capacious as Shakespeare’s own. — Sara Holdren, Vulture, 28 Sep. 2026

Other issues that need to be ironed out include revenue-sharing, the playoff format and the international draft. — Molly Geary, Sportico.com, 28 Sep. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1753, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for iron out

• roundabout
• runabout
• sauerkraut
• thereabout
• turnabout
• about
• bailout
• blackout
• blowout
• breakout
• burnout
• buyout

Kids Definition

iron out

verb

1

: to make smooth or flat by or as if by ironing

2

: to work out a solution to

ironed out their differences