shootout: Meaning and Definition of

shoot•out

1. a gunfight that must end in defeat for one side or the other, as between gunfighters in the Old West, criminal groups, or law-enforcement officers and criminals.
2. any military conflict or skirmish.
3. a high-scoring or intensely played game or tournament, as of basketball or ice hockey.
4. a method of breaking a tie score at the end of overtime in which five players from each team alternate shooting at the opponent's goal, starting from a spot 35 yd. (39 m) from the goal line, in an attempt to kick the ball past the rival goalkeeper in under five seconds.