EXTERNAL
external
(adjective) happening or arising or located outside or beyond some limits or especially surface; “the external auditory canal”; “external pressures”
external
(adjective) purely outward or superficial; “external composure”; “an external concern for reputation”- A.R.Gurney,Jr.
external, international, outside
(adjective) from or between other countries; “external commerce”; “international trade”; “developing nations need outside help”
external, extraneous, outside
(adjective) coming from the outside; “extraneous light in the camera spoiled the photograph”; “relying upon an extraneous income”; “disdaining outside pressure groups”
external
(noun) outward features; “he enjoyed the solemn externals of religion”
Source: WordNet® 3.1
Etymology
Adjective
external (comparative more external, superlative most external)
Outside of something; on the exterior.
Not intrinsic nor essential; accidental; accompanying; superficial.
Foreign; relating to or connected with foreign nations.
(anatomy) Away from the mesial plane of the body; lateral.
Provided by something or someone outside of the entity (object, group, company etc.) considered.
Synonyms
• (not intrinsic nor essential): See also extrinsic
Antonyms
• internal
Noun
external (plural externals)
(mostly, in the plural) The exterior; outward features or appearances.
(programming) In the C programming language, a variable that is defined in the source code but whose value comes from some external source.
Source: Wiktionary
Ex*ter"nal, a. Etym: [L. externus, fr. exter, exterus, on the outside, outward. See Exterior.]
1. Outward; exterior; relating to the outside, as of a body; being without; acting from without; -- opposed to internal; as, the external form or surface of a body. Of all external things, . . . She [Fancy] forms imaginations, aery shapes. Milton.
2. Outside of or separate from ourselves; (Metaph.) separate from the perceiving mind.
3. Outwardly perceptible; visible; physical or corporeal, as distinguished from mental or moral. Her virtues graced with external gifts. Shak.
4. Not intrinsic nor essential; accidental; accompanying; superficial. The external circumstances are greatly different. Trench.
5. Foreign; relating to or connected with foreign nations; as, external trade or commerce; the external relations of a state or kingdom.
6. (Anat.)
Definition: Away from the mesial plane of the body; lateral. External angles. (Geom.) See under Angle.
Ex*ter"nal, n.
Definition: Something external or without; outward part; that which makes a show, rather than that which is intrinsic; visible form; -- usually in the plural. Adam was then no less glorious in his externals South. God in externals could not place content. Pope.
Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition
Recent Word Finds
Word of the Day
12 January 2025
HABIT
(noun) (psychology) an automatic pattern of behavior in reaction to a specific situation; may be inherited or acquired through frequent repetition; “owls have nocturnal habits”; “she had a habit twirling the ends of her hair”; “long use had hardened him to it”
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