to out
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to come out
To voluntarily make one's own previously secret sexual orientation or gender identity publicly known.
Der Fußballprofi hat sich in einem bewegenden Interview geoutet.
The professional footballer came out in a moving interview.
to out someone
To make another person's sexual orientation or other private information public without their consent.
Die Boulevardpresse wurde stark dafür kritisiert, den Politiker gegen seinen Willen zu outen.
The tabloid press was strongly criticized for outing the politician against his will.
to reveal oneself as
Colloquial for admitting a preference, opinion, or trait that one had previously kept to oneself, often in a humorous way.
Ich muss mich jetzt mal als großer Fan von Schlagermusik aus den 70ern outen.
I now have to reveal myself as a big fan of 70s Schlager music.
'Outen' is a loanword from English (to out). In German, it is conjugated like a regular weak verb: 'ich oute' (I out), 'du outest' (you out), 'er outet' (he outs), 'geoutet' (outed).
Sie hat sich gestern vor ihrer ganzen Familie geoutet.
She came out to her whole family yesterday.
You can recognize the meaning from the sentence structure. 'Sich outen' (to come out; reflexive) means to speak about oneself. 'Jemanden outen' (to out someone; transitive with an accusative object) means to speak about another person. 'Sich outen als' usually refers to a preference or trait.
Er hat sich vor seinen Freunden geoutet.
He came out to his friends.
In its main meaning, 'outen' (to out/come out) is a reflexive verb. The reflexive pronoun ('sich') is in the accusative and is obligatory.
Es erfordert viel Mut, sich am Arbeitsplatz zu outen.
It takes a lot of courage to come out at work.
The use of 'sich outen als' (to reveal oneself as) for preferences or opinions is colloquial and often meant humorously. It describes a playful 'confession' about something that was not really a secret.
Nach dem dritten Stück Kuchen musste ich mich als Naschkatze outen.
After the third piece of cake, I had to reveal myself as someone with a sweet tooth.
to reveal
Both words can express that a previously private sexual orientation becomes publicly known. „Sich outen“ is the colloquial form used especially when referring to one's own identity, while „offenbaren“ sounds more formal and general. „Offenbaren“ is therefore more appropriate in a factual or solemn context, while „sich outen“ is more natural in everyday speech.
Die Schauspielerin outete sich in einem Interview als lesbisch.
The actress came out as a lesbian in an interview.
Die Schauspielerin offenbarte in einem Interview ihre sexuelle Orientierung.
The actress revealed her sexual orientation in an interview.
