foreign

[fawr-in, for-]

adjective

1. of, relating to, or derived from another country or nation; not native.

   foreign cars.

2. of or relating to contact or dealings with other countries; connected with foreign affairs.

3. external to one's own country or nation.

   a foreign country.

4. carried on abroad, or with other countries.

   foreign trade.

   Synonyms: international

5. belonging to or coming from another district, province, etc.

6. located outside a specific district, province, etc.

7. Law.

   1. of or relating to law outside of local jurisdiction.

   2. of or relating to another jurisdiction, as of another nation or state.

8. belonging to or proceeding from other persons or things.

   a statement supported by foreign testimony.

9. not belonging to the place or body where found.

   foreign matter in a chemical mixture.

10. not related to or connected with the thing under consideration.

    foreign to our discussion.

11. alien in character; irrelevant or inappropriate; remote.

    Synonyms: outside, extraneous

12. strange or unfamiliar.

foreign

/ ˈfɒrɪn /

adjective

1. of, involving, located in, or coming from another country, area, people, etc

   a foreign resident

2. dealing or concerned with another country, area, people, etc

   a foreign office

3. not pertinent or related

   a matter foreign to the discussion

4. not familiar; strange

5. in an abnormal place or position

   foreign matter

   foreign bodies

6. law outside the jurisdiction of a particular state; alien

Other Word Forms

• foreignness noun
• foreignly adverb
• nonforeign adjective
• nonforeignness noun
• proforeign adjective
• quasi-foreign adjective
• unforeign adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of foreign¹

First recorded in 1200–50; Middle English forein, from Old French forain, forein, from unattested Vulgar Latin forānus, derivative of Latin forās “outside”

Word History and Origins

Origin of foreign¹

C13: from Old French forain , from Vulgar Latin forānus (unattested) situated on the outside, from Latin foris outside

Example Sentences

But the compact differs in proposing strict limits on foreign student enrollment and the tuition freeze for U.S. citizens.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

North Korea has held a military parade marking the 80th anniversary of its ruling Workers' Party, with high-level foreign guests in attendance, state media said Saturday.

Read more on Barron's

Financial-services firms make up the majority of S&P 500 companies reporting earnings next week, but two foreign tech firms at the heart of the artificial-intelligence ecosystem will also provide results.

Read more on Barron's

“We’re a supplier of hope for people to whom hope is foreign,” he said.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

They would require foreign companies to get approval for selling magnets that contain even minimal amounts of rare earth sourced from China, or produced or refined using Chinese technology.

Read more on Barron's

Related Words

• alien 
• different 
• external 
• offshore 
• overseas 
• unfamiliar