externality
Americannoun
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the state or quality of being external to or outside someone or something; the fact of being outer, outward, or on the surface.
A child just learning to speak already has a sense of the externality of the world.
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something external; an outward feature, or all outward features considered together.
One can be too preoccupied with the externalities of religion.
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excessive attention to external or outward features; superficiality.
The article explores the externality of identity in a world of media-constructed self-image.
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a side effect of some process or activity, especially a negative effect of an economic activity that is not accounted for in the price of what is produced.
Externalities such as air pollution are sometimes eliminated through government regulation.
They argue that there is an externality from breeding new pets, as the cute babies crowd out older pets.
noun
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the state or condition of being external
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something external
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philosophy the quality of existing independently of a perceiving mind
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an economic effect that results from an economic choice but is not reflected in market prices
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of externality
Explanation
An externality is an outside factor or condition that can affect something else. A snow storm for example, is an externality that can cause delays at the airport. Externality comes from the Latin root word externus meaning "outside" or "outward." An externality is something on the outside that affects other things. Often an externality is a behavior or result of behavior by one party that affects others who have no choice in its happening. For example, factory pollution is an externality that can affect people's health and well-being. It's outside of their control and yet it has an impact on their lives.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Most people think of money as a macro phenomenon or externality.
From MarketWatch ● May 12, 2026
"In economics, we call that externality," she said.
From Science Daily ● May 22, 2024
“We create prosperous and exclusive communities, but in so doing also create neighborhoods with concentrated despair — the externality of stockpiled opportunity.”
From Seattle Times ● Sep. 22, 2023
Our society has accepted these costs, he said — but with this stop sign camera, the District has charged for the externality in the hope of eliminating it.
From Washington Post ● May 31, 2022
Imagination represents things in the externality of space and time, and is subjected to no other conditions but those of space and time.
From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 5, Slice 4 "Carnegie Andrew" to "Casus Belli" by Various
How do you think about the potential externalities of AI, such as unemployment?
From Barron's ● Apr. 7, 2026
Preparation for these varying externalities requires supply-chain middlemen and product sellers to anticipate consequential cost increases down the line—and implement them sooner than later, in order to cover their margins.
From Slate ● Jun. 17, 2024
Advocates of true cost accounting assert that its more nuanced approach will address shortcomings in traditional cost-benefit analysis – particularly, failing to consider social and health externalities in depth.
From Salon ● Feb. 28, 2024
“The negative externalities of generative AI will be a critical topic for debate in 2024,” Havemeyer said.
From Seattle Times ● Feb. 16, 2024
But we equally err if we try to bring such externalities into the worship of the Christian Church, and if we are blind to their worth at an earlier stage.
From Expositions of Holy Scripture Second Kings Chapters VIII to End and Chronicles, Ezra, and Nehemiah. Esther, Job, Proverbs, and Ecclesiastes by Maclaren, Alexander
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
