Adjacent Words

out of doors definitions

	Tweet

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

adv
1: outside a building; "in summer we play outside" [syn: outside, outdoors, out of doors, alfresco] [ant: indoors, inside]

Merriam Webster's

adverb Date: 1603 outdoors

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Out Out, adv. [OE. out, ut, oute, ute, AS. [=u]t, and [=u]te, [=u]tan, fr. [=u]t; akin to D. uit, OS. [=u]t, G. aus, OHG. [=u]z, Icel. [=u]t, Sw. ut, Dan. ud, Goth. ut, Skr. ud. [root]198. Cf. About, But, prep., Carouse, Utter, a.] In its original and strict sense, out means from the interior of something; beyond the limits or boundary of somethings; in a position or relation which is exterior to something; -- opposed to in or into. The something may be expressed after of, from, etc. (see Out of, below); or, if not expressed, it is implied; as, he is out; or, he is out of the house, office, business, etc.; he came out; or, he came out from the ship, meeting, sect, party, etc. Out is used in a variety of applications, as: 1. Away; abroad; off; from home, or from a certain, or a usual, place; not in; not in a particular, or a usual, place; as, the proprietor is out, his team was taken out. ``My shoulder blade is out.'' --Shak. He hath been out (of the country) nine years. --Shak. 2. Beyond the limits of concealment, confinement, privacy, constraint, etc., actual of figurative; hence, not in concealment, constraint, etc., in, or into, a state of freedom, openness, disclosure, publicity, etc.; as, the sun shines out; he laughed out, to be out at the elbows; the secret has leaked out, or is out; the disease broke out on his face; the book is out. Leaves are out and perfect in a month. --Bacon. She has not been out [in general society] very long. --H. James. 3. Beyond the limit of existence, continuance, or supply; to the end; completely; hence, in, or into, a condition of extinction, exhaustion, completion; as, the fuel, or the fire, has burned out. ``Hear me out.'' --Dryden. Deceitiful men shall not live out half their days. --Ps. iv. 23. When the butt is out, we will drink water. --Shak. 4. Beyond possession, control, or occupation; hence, in, or into, a state of want, loss, or deprivation; -- used of office, business, property, knowledge, etc.; as, the Democrats went out and the Whigs came in; he put his money out at interest. ``Land that is out at rack rent.'' --Locke. ``He was out fifty pounds.'' --Bp. Fell. I have forgot my part, and I am out. --Shak. 5. Beyond the bounds of what is true, reasonable, correct, proper, common, etc.; in error or mistake; in a wrong or incorrect position or opinion; in a state of disagreement, opposition, etc.; in an inharmonious relation. ``Lancelot and I are out.'' --Shak. Wicked men are strangely out in the calculating of their own interest. --South. Very seldom out, in these his guesses. --Addison. 6. Not in the position to score in playing a game; not in the state or turn of the play for counting or gaining scores. Note: Out is largely used in composition as a prefix, with the same significations that it has as a separate word; as outbound, outbreak, outbuilding, outcome, outdo, outdoor, outfield. See also the first Note under Over, adv. Day in, day out, from the beginning to the limit of each of several days; day by day; every day. Out and out. (a) adv. Completely; wholly; openly. (b) adj. Without any reservation or disguise; absolute; as, an out and out villain. [As an adj. written also out-and-out.] Out at, Out in, Out on, etc., elliptical phrases, that to which out refers as a source, origin, etc., being omitted; as, out (of the house and) at the barn; out (of the house, road, fields, etc., and) in the woods. Three fishers went sailing out into the west, Out into the west, as the sun went down. --C. Kingsley. Note: In these lines after out may be understood, ``of the harbor,'' ``from the shore,'' ``of sight,'' or some similar phrase. The complete construction is seen in the saying: ``Out of the frying pan into the fire.'' Out from, a construction similar to out of (below). See Of and From. Out of, a phrase which may be considered either as composed of an adverb and a preposition, each having its appropriate office in the sentence, or as a compound preposition. Considered as a preposition, it denotes, with verbs of movement or action, from the interior of; beyond the limit: from; hence, origin, source, motive, departure, separation, loss, etc.; -- opposed to in or into; also with verbs of being, the state of being derived, removed, or separated from. Examples may be found in the phrases below, and also under Vocabulary words; as, out of breath; out of countenance. Out of cess, beyond measure, excessively. --Shak. Out of character, unbecoming; improper. Out of conceit with, not pleased with. See under Conceit. Out of date, not timely; unfashionable; antiquated. Out of door, Out of doors, beyond the doors; from the house; in, or into, the open air; hence, figuratively, shut out; dismissed. See under Door, also, Out-of-door, Outdoor, Outdoors, in the Vocabulary. ``He 's quality, and the question's out of door,'' --Dryden. Out of favor, disliked; under displeasure. Out of frame, not in correct order or condition; irregular; disarranged. --Latimer. Out of hand, immediately; without delay or preparation. ``Ananias . . . fell down and died out of hand.'' --Latimer.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Door Door, n. [OE. dore, dure, AS. duru; akin to OS. dura, dor, D. deur, OHG. turi, door, tor gate, G. th["u]r, thor, Icel. dyrr, Dan. d["o]r, Sw. d["o]rr, Goth. daur, Lith. durys, Russ. dvere, Olr. dorus, L. fores, Gr. ?; cf. Skr. dur, dv[=a]ra. ????. Cf. Foreign.] 1. An opening in the wall of a house or of an apartment, by which to go in and out; an entrance way. To the same end, men several paths may tread, As many doors into one temple lead. --Denham. 2. The frame or barrier of boards, or other material, usually turning on hinges, by which an entrance way into a house or apartment is closed and opened. At last he came unto an iron door That fast was locked. --Spenser. 3. Passage; means of approach or access. I am the door; by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved. --John x. 9. 4. An entrance way, but taken in the sense of the house or apartment to which it leads. Martin's office is now the second door in the street. --Arbuthnot. Blank door, Blind door, etc. (Arch.) See under Blank, Blind, etc. In doors, or Within doors, within the house. Next door to, near to; bordering on. A riot unpunished is but next door to a tumult. --L'Estrange. Out of doors, or Without doors, and, colloquially, Out doors, out of the house; in open air; abroad; away; lost. His imaginary title of fatherhood is out of doors. --Locke. To lay (a fault, misfortune, etc.) at one's door, to charge one with a fault; to blame for. To lie at one's door, to be imputable or chargeable to. If I have failed, the fault lies wholly at my door. --Dryden. Note: Door is used in an adjectival construction or as the first part of a compound (with or without the hyphen), as, door frame, doorbell or door bell, door knob or doorknob, door latch or doorlatch, door jamb, door handle, door mat, door panel.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

also out-of-doors If you are out of doors, you are outside a building rather than inside it. Sometimes we eat out of doors... = outdoors ? indoors ADV: ADV after v, be ADV