outline
Americannoun
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outlines
plural
-
the line by which a figure or object is defined or bounded; contour.
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a drawing or sketch restricted to line without shading or modeling of form.
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a general sketch, account, or report, indicating only the main features, as of a book, subject, or project.
an outline of medieval history; an outline of a speech.
-
outlines, the essential features or main aspects of something under discussion.
At the first meeting, we gave her only the outlines of the project.
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Printing. an ornamented type in which the outside contours of each character appear in black, with the inside left white.
verb (used with object)
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outlines,
present (3rd person singular)
-
outlined,
past participle, past
-
outlining
present participle
noun
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a preliminary or schematic plan, draft, account, etc
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(usually plural) the important features of an argument, theory, work, etc
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the line by which an object or figure is or appears to be bounded
-
-
a drawing or manner of drawing consisting only of external lines
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( as modifier )
an outline map
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verb
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to draw or display the outline of
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to give the main features or general idea of
Synonym Usage
See form.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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outlinesimple
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outlinessimple
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have outlinedperfect
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has outlinedperfect
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am outliningprogressive
-
are outliningprogressive
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is outliningprogressive
-
have been outliningperfect progressive
-
has been outliningperfect progressive
Past
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outlinedsimple
-
had outlinedperfect
-
was outliningprogressive
-
were outliningprogressive
-
had been outliningperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of outline
Explanation
The gist, the essence, the major parts of something — that's its outline. The origins of outline come from the artistic practice of marking a line around the outer edge of a person or shape in a picture before filling it in. Only later, in the 1800s, did it come to be applied to verbal descriptions, too. Technically an outline suggests a condensed form of something, but as any high school or college student knows, course outlines have a habit of being pretty darn long. In 1919 H.G. Wells wrote a book called An Outline of History. Its length? 1,324 pages.
Vocabulary lists containing outline
Jim Burke's Academic Vocabulary List
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Expository Writing, List 2
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Writing - Middle School
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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:
Planning documents for an outline planning application detail a "temporary ancillary energy centre" with gas turbines that have a maximum generating capacity of 49.9MW.
From BBC ● Oct. 16, 2026
The company said it would update its strategy in December, giving new Chief Executive Meg O’Neill her first opportunity to outline her vision to investors.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 14, 2026
They also did not outline the specific coverage amounts of insurance policies.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 1, 2026
The latest clinical practice guidelines from the American Heart Association outline several steps intended to improve measurement accuracy.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 1, 2026
It’s clear that Miss Genovese has spent a lot of time going over the outline of this morning, scrutinizing every detail of what happened for clues.
From "The Brightwood Code" by Monica Hesse
The nonprofit Stand Up for Stand Up posted a detailed breakdown of the data that outlines a 66% shrinkage in the SiriusXM Raw channel roster.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 8, 2026
Richard Hasen, professor of law at UCLA, outlines five levers the president could pull and how states, courts, and the people could respond.
From Slate ● Oct. 8, 2026
Microsoft stock rises after the tech company outlines new features for CoPilot, its AI assistant.
From Barron's ● Sep. 25, 2026
According to the show's curators, elements of Flaxman's sketches can be seen in Turner's painting called Ulysses Deriding Polyphemus – Homer's Odyssey, including outlines of horses in the sunset and the shadow of a cyclops.
From BBC ● Sep. 18, 2026
As the familiar palm-thatched outlines of the Apprentices’ Quarters loomed ahead, Heqet resumed his usual flippant tone.
From "The Golden Goblet" by Eloise Jarvis McGraw
This week in the Don’t Short Yourself newsletter, she outlined one move you can make to save $20,000 on the cost of your wedding.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 16, 2026
LA28 Cultural Olympiad Executive Director Nora Halpern and Jones provided updates on plans first outlined in May, including an official Cultural Olympiad mark recognizing participating programs and a digital calendar and mapping platform.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 15, 2026
The automaker’s management used the Paris Motor Show to reiterate the significant challenges facing the business but outlined a clearer pathway toward its 8%-10% margin ambition by 2030.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 13, 2026
The Microsoft boss outlined the company's proposals to strengthen safety across the sector, starting with a requirement that AI agents be equipped with "safety brakes" that users could activate in the event of an incident.
From Barron's ● Oct. 13, 2026
It was darker now, but the flame spurts behind him outlined his face.
From "The Princess Bride" by William Goldman
On Monday, hundreds of professional stand-up comedians flooded Instagram and TikTok with front-facing videos outlining an issue in the comedy community that had been brewing for months.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 8, 2026
"The defendant will plead guilty because the defendant is in fact guilty of the charged offense," prosecutors stated in a court filing outlining the plea deal.
From BBC ● Oct. 6, 2026
At a February congress meeting outlining the military’s new five-year objectives, Kim vowed to create new AI-enabled unmanned attack systems.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 27, 2026
Morgan Stanley also accepted that the moves they are outlining are not particularly large.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 25, 2026
Recently I received in the mail a handwritten pamphlet outlining the spread of HIV by the FBI.
From "Native Speaker" by Chang-rae Lee
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
