outer

[ou-ter]

adjective

1. situated on or toward the outside; external; exterior.

   outer garments; an outer wall.

2. situated farther out or farther from the center.

   the outer reaches of space.

3. of or relating to the external world.

outer

/ ˈaʊtə /

adjective

1. being or located on the outside; external

2. further from the middle or central part

noun

1. archery

   1. the white outermost ring on a target

   2. a shot that hits this ring

2. the unsheltered part of the spectator area at a sports ground

3. informal,  excluded or neglected

Other Word Forms

• outerness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of outer¹

Middle English word dating back to 1350–1400; out, -er ⁴

Example Sentences

The folds of the cerebral cortex also stabilize, forming the ridges seen on the outer surface.

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In other words, the coronagraph acts like an artificial Moon, blocking the Sun's bright surface to let scientists continuously observe its faint outer corona -something the real Moon does only during eclipses.

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The active galactic nucleus heats the surrounding gas envelope in a way that resembles how fusion heats the outer layers of a star, producing a similar outward appearance.

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In this process, the outer soft tissues of the animal were preserved as a delicate clay coating that settled over the skeleton after burial, forming a mask less than 1/100th of an inch thick.

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Sednoids are an exclusive group of small space rocks located on the outer edge of our Solar System and move around the Sun in weird orbits – including Ammonite, there are only four known sednoids!

Read more on Space Scoop

Related Words

• exterior 
• outlying