Etymologically
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indoor

This is the current revision of this entry, as edited by bogdan on 16 October 2026 at 14:48. This address is a permanent link to this version.
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Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ˈɪndɔː/ (UK); /ˈɪndoɹ/ (US)[1]

Etymology

It is an alteration of within-door, from the phrase within door, in a building,[2][3][4] under the influence of in;[2][4] it is formed with door.[4]

Earliest recorded meaning

Situated inside a building, as opposed to outdoor: the 1670s in Etymonline;[3] 1711 in the OED and MWU.[5][2]

Semantic evolution

In Middle English the ideas were expressed by within walls and without walls.[3] Within the workhouse or poorhouse, as indoor relief, is from 1864.[5] The form indoors is attested from 1759, and as an adverb from 1801;[3] within-door is by the 1570s.[3] In Yorkshire dialect an indoor was an inner porch of a cottage.[6]

Timeline

  • 1570s – within-door.[3]
  • 1670s – indoor.[3]
  • 1759 – indoors.[3]
  • 1864 – within the workhouse.[5]

Modern meaning

Adjective

  1. Situated in, done in or suitable for the inside of a building: an indoor pool.

Word family

  • indoors
  • indoor baseball
  • indoor soccer

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  4. ^ a b c Pearsall, Judy, ed. (1998), The New Oxford Dictionary of English, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  5. ^ a b c Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
  6. ^ Wright, Joseph, ed. (1898–1905), The English Dialect Dictionary, 6 vols., Oxford: Henry Frowde; via EDD Online 4.0, University of Innsbruck (CC BY 4.0)