outset
Americannoun
-
the beginning or start.
I wanted to explain the situation at the outset.
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of outset
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Vocabulary lists containing outset
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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.
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“Today’s agreement is a significant win because the result is exactly what we have sought from the outset: a direct path to a trial based on the evidence,” a Paramount spokesperson said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 24, 2026
From the outset, Fedorov -- who never served in the army -- clashed with the military's command and their traditionally stiff approach.
From Barron's ● Jul. 16, 2026
From the outset, his decision to delay included the risk that he might never live long enough to collect — or might collect very little.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 15, 2026
Salt, usually ultra-aggressive from the outset, had been frustrated by his inability to time the ball early in his innings.
From BBC ● Jul. 7, 2026
Eventually, we would plan to send out messages on our own and receive answers, but at the outset it seems more practical to begin by catching snatches of conversation between others.
From "The Lives of a Cell" by Lewis Thomas
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Those series knew what they wanted to accomplish at their respective outsets, but could not match that overall intent with endings that were previously determined for them.
From Salon ● Jul. 15, 2021
Mr. Blodget tells us that he never expected to advance more than a quarter of the outsets.
From Glimpses of the Past History of the River St. John, A.D. 1604-1784 by Raymond, W. O. (William Odber)
When a part of the common is enclosed and farmed, the enclosure is called an outset; but the outsets are never included in the numeration of merks of rental land.
From Second Shetland Truck System Report by Guthrie, William
But the outsets, with the strictest economy, must always of necessity be large, showing that crime is an important drawback to industry and thrift.
From The Prison Chaplaincy, And Its Experiences by Quinby, Hosea
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.