| 1. | a defeat attended with disorderly flight; dispersal of a defeated force in complete disorder: to put an army to rout; to put reason to rout. |
| 2. | any overwhelming defeat: a rout of the home team by the state champions. |
| 3. | a tumultuous or disorderly crowd of persons. |
| 4. | the rabble or mob. |
| 5. | Law. a disturbance of the public peace by three or more persons acting together in a manner that suggests an intention to riot although they do not actually carry out the intention. |
| 6. | a large, formal evening party or social gathering. |
| 7. | Archaic. a company or band of people. |
| 8. | to disperse in defeat and disorderly flight: to rout an army. |
| 9. | to defeat decisively: to rout an opponent in conversation. |

,| 1. | to root: pigs routing in the garden. |
| 2. | to poke, search, or rummage. |
| 3. | to turn over or dig up (something) with the snout. |
| 4. | to find or get by searching, rummaging, etc. (usually fol. by out). |
| 5. | to cause to rise from bed (often fol. by up or out). |
| 6. | to force or drive out. |
| 7. | to hollow out or furrow, as with a scoop, gouge, or machine. |
rout 1 (rout) n.
[Middle English route, from Old French, troop, defeat, from Vulgar Latin *rupta, from feminine of Latin ruptus, past participle of rumpere, to break; see reup- in Indo-European roots.] |