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
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
It was a mythological declaration of outward-bound triumph, not inward-bound migration.
From New York Times ● Jan. 3, 2012
Sea′ward-bound, outward-bound, as a vessel leaving harbour; Sea′ward-gaz′ing, gazing or looking towards the sea.—n.
From Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 4 of 4: S-Z and supplements) by Various
Outward Bound said Princess Beatrice is involved with the group "in her honorary role as Deputy Patron".
From BBC ● Feb. 6, 2026
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
In just the past few weeks, all of these entities named their first female CEOs: Outward Bound, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts, the Central West Virginia Regional Airport Authority, HistoryMiami Museum and many others.
From Seattle Times ● Oct. 24, 2022
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
“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.
