Sound out — To raise something informally or test views before deciding how far to take it, often by speaking to the relevant people before formal staffing or escalation.

Definition

Cross-government

Example: Sound this out with Finance first before we put it into the paper.

Also known as: sound this out, sound them out, sound out the issue

Context: Usage varies. It can mean sounding out a person or stakeholder to test their reaction, or informally raising an issue to see how it is received.

Where you may encounter this

Starting in Public Service Writing a paper Working across agencies

Source checked Checked 2026-08-10

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