First recorded in 1595–1605
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
In terms of performance, the bank scored higher net interest income, a closely-watched benchmark measuring the difference between revenue from lending and outward-bound interest payments.
From Barron's ● Jan. 13, 2026
Peter Manson remains implacably opposed to his son’s outward-bound ambitions.
From New York Times ● May 7, 2018
On distant seas, their dragon-prows went gleaming outward-bound ship.
From Slate ● Oct. 30, 2015
IT IS hard to rise to the top in business without doing an outward-bound course.
From Economist ● Oct. 2, 2014
From the time of the founding of settlements, outward-bound ships from the Netherlands brought supplies for the colonists and carried back cargoes of furs, tobacco, and maize.
From Dutch and English on the Hudson A Chronicle of Colonial New York by Goodwin, Maud Wilder
And many people find a renewed sense of self and purpose through wilderness programs such as Outward Bound and the National Outdoor Leadership School.
From Washington Post ● Jan. 20, 2023
Klein had worked with local conservation groups like Outward Bound Adventures, Tree People and Heal the Bay, and was familiar with the L.A. park system’s many unknown or underused amphitheaters and gathering places.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 29, 2022
The only guests have been some evacuees from an aborted Outward Bound trip and the occasional firefighter, both being charged at cost, she said.
From Seattle Times ● Aug. 7, 2021
A coalition of Scottish outdoor organisations - including Girlguiding, The Outward Bound Trust and the Association of Heads of Outdoor Education Centres - has warned that "more will follow and shut down permanently before Christmas".
From BBC ● Sep. 8, 2020
“I swear. This guy I know told me. He was an Outward Bound guide.”
From "Middlesex: A Novel" by Jeffrey Eugenides
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.
