outlook

American  

[aut-look] / ˈaʊtˌlʊk /

noun

• outlooks
  plural

1. the view or prospect from a particular place.

   Synonyms:

   scene

2. mental attitude or view; point of view.

   one's outlook on life.

   Synonyms:

   approach, position, viewpoint, attitude

3. prospect of the future.

   the political outlook.

   Synonyms:

   scene

4. the place from which an observer looks out; lookout.

5. the act or state of looking out.

6. a watch kept; vigilance; lookout.

   a careful outlook to prevent forest fires.

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outlook British  

/ ˈaʊtˌlʊk /

noun

1. a mental attitude or point of view

2. the probable or expected condition or outcome of something

   the weather outlook

3. the view from a place

4. view or prospect

5. the act or state of looking out

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• outlooks
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of outlook

First recorded in 1660–70; out- + look

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Explanation

The word outlook describes a belief about the future. Your outlook on the awful present situation might make your outlook for the future turn grim. The noun outlook can also mean the practice of looking out. A guard's outlook on the bank vault must stay watchful and attentive in case there's an attempted robbery. Your outlook on your first job out of college was one of promise and excitement. The word can also mean a characteristic mental attitude that determines how you will handle situations. A pessimistic outlook on life will make you see only the negative.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

outlook outlooks

Capuano said the results, and expectations for continued healthy demand, prompted the company to raise its RevPAR outlook for the year.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 2, 2026

Japanese chipmaker Kioxia plunged more than 15 percent after giving a cautious outlook that fell short of forecasts.

From Barron's ● Nov. 2, 2026

For the full year, Marriott now expects RevPAR growth of 4.5% to 5%, compared with its prior outlook of 3% to 3.5%.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 2, 2026

The outlook for reviving the deadlocked talks remains bleak.

From Barron's ● Nov. 2, 2026

Deciphering the laws of heredity, he wrote, would transform “man’s outlook on the world, and his power over nature” more “than any other advance in natural knowledge that can be foreseen.”

From "The Gene" by Siddhartha Mukherjee

It speculates it is due to investors rotating out of trades related to artificial intelligence, as opposed to stellar updates on banks’ profit outlooks.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 3, 2026

Vertiv and Flex, which supply infrastructure for data centers, jumped 17% and 12%, respectively, after reporting blowout quarterly earnings and raising their full-year outlooks.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 28, 2026

On Tuesday, the IMF will unveil its global economic forecast, along with detailed regional outlooks through the week, as policymakers set about tackling the challenges darkening the economic horizon.

From Barron's ● Oct. 11, 2026

Much of the current optimism comes from FactSet’s information-technology sector, in which 44 companies issued upbeat third-quarter profit outlooks that topped analysts’ estimates.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 4, 2026

In reality, I regularly observe in New Guinea that native societies there differ greatly from each other in their prevalent outlooks.

From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond

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