Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • adjective Outer; external.
  • adjective Originating or acting from the outside.
  • adjective Suitable for use outside.
  • noun A part or a surface that is outside.
  • noun An external or outward appearance.
  • noun A representation in visual art of the outdoors.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • Situated or being outside; pertaining to or connected with that which is outside; outward; outlying; external: as, the exterior relations or possessions of a country; an exterior boundary or line of fortification.
  • Related to or connected with the outside; acting or originating from without; outwardly manifested or perceived; not intrinsic.
  • Consisting of or constituting the outer or visible part; outwardly observable; external; manifest.
  • Being on the outer side or outer part; of or pertaining to the outer surface, or to that surface as viewed from the outside: as, the exterior decorations of a church.
  • In botany, on the side away from the axis: same as anterior.
  • noun The outer surface or aspect; the outside; the external features: as, the exterior of a building; we can seldom judge a man by his exterior.
  • noun Outward or visible deportment, form, or ceremony; visible act: as, the exteriors of religion.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun The outward surface or part of a thing; that which is external; outside.
  • noun Outward or external deportment, form, or ceremony; visible act.
  • adjective External; outward; pertaining to that which is external; -- opposed to interior.
  • adjective External; on the outside; without the limits of; extrinsic.
  • adjective Relating to foreign nations; foreign.
  • adjective (Geom.) the angle included between any side of a triangle or polygon and the prolongation of the adjacent side; also, an angle included between a line crossing two parallel lines and either of the latter on the outside.
  • adjective (Fort.) the side of the polygon upon which a front of fortification is formed.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • adjective Relating to the outside parts or surface of something.
  • adjective Being from outside a country; foreign.
  • adjective Outdoors.
  • noun The outside part, parts or surface of something.
  • noun Foreign lands.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun the region that is outside of something
  • noun the outer side or surface of something
  • adjective situated in or suitable for the outdoors or outside of a building

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Latin, comparative of exter, outward; see eghs in Indo-European roots.]

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