overseas
Americanadverb
adjective
-
of or relating to passage over the sea.
overseas travel.
-
situated beyond the sea.
overseas territories.
-
pertaining to countries, associations, activities, etc., beyond the sea.
overseas military service; overseas commitments.
noun
adverb
adjective
-
of, to, in, from, or situated in countries beyond the sea
-
Also: oversea. of or relating to passage over the sea
noun
Etymology
Origin of overseas
before 1150; oversea ( Middle English overse, Old English ofer sǣ; see over-, sea) + -s 3 or -s 1
Explanation
There's no trick to the meaning of overseas. If someone goes overseas, they've gone "over" the "seas" — to a foreign country. When overseas came into use, there were no airplanes, so technically speaking, one traveled "across" or "on" the seas, in a ship. Nevertheless, one was thought to have made it "over the sea," hence overseas. When traveling overseas, make sure your phone works on the network in the country where you're headed. Also, the laws and customs overseas can be very different from the ones we have here, so be careful. What here at home you consider small potatoes legally might be a big deal overseas.
Vocabulary lists containing overseas
Chapter 21: Age of Exploration and Trade
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This Week in Words: Current Events Vocab for October 2–October 8, 2021
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Chapter 27: America and World War II
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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.
In early European trading, futures in New York were 0.9% higher at $4,564 a troy ounce, while the U.S. dollar index slipped 0.2% to 99.01, making dollar-denominated commodities cheaper for overseas buyers.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 25, 2026
Huawei hopes to bring the Maextro S800 overseas eventually, but U.S. sanctions effectively ban Huawei products in the U.S.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 24, 2026
But the overseas expansion is likely to be accompanied by "selective caution" on large domestic investments, says Singh.
From BBC • May 24, 2026
At 17, he enlisted in the RAF before travelling overseas.
From BBC • May 23, 2026
While Elizabeth Cady Stanton was overseas, Susan B. Anthony continued to be singularly devoted to the cause of female suffrage.
From "Votes for Women!" by Winifred Conkling
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.
