Etymologically
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outside

Etymology and origin of the English word outside

History Permalink
Confidence
Established
Formation
Compound
First attested
1505
Ultimate origins
English (out)Old English (sīde)
Etymology tree
inherited borrowed derived
English side
English inside
English outside

Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ˌaʊtˈsaɪd/[1]

Etymology

It is a compound, from English out + side, the outer side.[2][3][4][5]

Earliest recorded meaning

The outer side or surface of something: 1505,[6][2][7] or about 1500 according to Etymonline;[3] Merriam-Webster dates the noun to 1502.[8]

Semantic evolution

The position close to the outer side of something is recorded from 1503.[6] The outer surface as what is seen, an outward appearance, is from 1592,[6] and since 1660 it has also meant mere outward form as opposed to substance.[6] The place beyond an enclosure or barrier is from the 1610s.[3] In isolated parts of northern Canada and Alaska the outside meant the settled world from 1827,[6][3] and in prison and army slang the world outside the prison or army by 1903.[3] The adjective is from 1634,[2][8] the adverb from 1813,[2][8] and the preposition from 1826.[2][8] Outside of, “except”, is first recorded in 1859 as an Americanism.[2][3] Outside chance, “a slight chance”, is from 1845.[3] Outsider is from 1800, in Jane Austen's letters.[2]

Timeline

  • 1503 – a position close to the outer side.[6]
  • 1505 – the outer surface.[6][2]
  • 1592 – outward appearance.[6]
  • 1610s – the area beyond an enclosure.[3]
  • 1634 – adjective.[2][8]
  • 1800 – outsider (Jane Austen).[2]
  • 1813 – adverb.[2][8]
  • 1826 – preposition.[2][8]
  • 1827 – the settled world, in the far north.[6]
  • 1859 – outside of, except.[2]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. The outer side or surface; the exterior.
  2. The outward appearance of something.
  3. The space beyond a boundary or limit.
  4. The utmost limit: at the outside.

Adjective

  1. On or near the outer side; outer.
  2. Coming from or acting beyond certain limits: outside help.
  3. Slight, remote: an outside chance.

Adverb

  1. On or to the outer side.
  2. Outdoors.

Preposition

  1. On or to the outer side of.
  2. Beyond the limits of.
  3. Except: outside of a few friends.

Word family

  • outsider
  • outside of

Usage notes

In Devon dialect, outside of meant “with the exception of”.[9]

References

  1. ^ Jones, Daniel (2011), Cambridge English Pronouncing Dictionary, 18th ed., ed. Peter Roach, Jane Setter and John Esling, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  4. ^ Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
  5. ^ Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h i Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
  7. ^ Kay, Christian; Roberts, Jane; Samuels, Michael; Wotherspoon, Irené, eds. (2009), Historical Thesaurus of the Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford: Oxford University Press; online edition (2024)
  8. ^ a b c d e f g Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (2003), 11th ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  9. ^ 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)
Cite this entry

“Outside.” Etymologically, 15 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/en/outside. Accessed 15 Oct. 2026.

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