[blackshoe]

My dictionary has the following definitions for "takeout":

takeout |ˈtākˌout|
noun
1 food that is cooked and sold by a restaurant or store to be eaten elsewhere: let’s just order takeout | [ as modifier ] : takeout pizza.
2 Bridge a bid in a different suit made in response to a bid or double by one's partner.

[barmar]

That dictionary entry was obviously not written by an experienced bridge player (although #1 may be an accurate description of our diets), or maybe it's just an archaic sense and hasn't been updated with modern usage. When was the last time you heard someone refer to the response to a takeout double as "takeout"? Sometimes we'll say that they're taking it out, as in "Takeout doubles are meant to be taken out." But we use the word "takeout" to mean that it asks partner to do that.

[TylerE]

I actually think that's correct, if slightly obscure usage.... consider how often the double (or the 1NT bid playing something like OS) is described as "for takeout", which would make advancer's bid the actual takeout.

[aguahombre]

TylerE, on 2013-August-13, 10:56, said:

I actually think that's correct, if slightly obscure usage.... consider how often the double (or the 1NT bid playing something like OS) is described as "for takeout", which would make advancer's bid the actual takeout.

This is a great start in sorting out what is what. That word "for" goes a long way in clearing up the answer for the opponents. It isn't the only way, however. At the table, I always believe that an opponent who asks about the nature of any call deserves something more than "takeout".