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.
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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)
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outlined,
past participle, past
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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
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-
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
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are outliningprogressive
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is outliningprogressive
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have been outliningperfect progressive
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has been outliningperfect progressive
Past
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outlinedsimple
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had outlinedperfect
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was outliningprogressive
-
were outliningprogressive
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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:
If the discussion keeps going in circles, outline the objectives to keep people on message.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 18, 2026
On the bouncing folk-rock number “Liberty Tree,” which again mentions Bobby, she sings, “I was alone with my thoughts / In an outline of chalk,” illustrating how isolation can feel like death.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 11, 2026
Once a fire is out, Eric's first task is to map its outline along the edge of the burnt vegetation, then trace it back to its point of origin.
From BBC ● Aug. 8, 2026
But he didn’t want to tell her about it until he had a script and not just an outline.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 6, 2026
In its place was the black outline of a square house, a Portuguese house.
From "A Girl Named Disaster" by Nancy Farmer
Archeological enquiries at the site in recent years have discovered that the outlines belonged to a long, narrow building which once stood on the lawn and linked two sides of a medieval courtyard.
From BBC ● Aug. 9, 2026
First laid out in 2023, the framework outlines how the company measures and mitigates emerging AI risks.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 7, 2026
On Tuesday, the BOE will publish its Asset Purchase Facility Quarterly Report, which outlines the bank’s stock of gilt holdings and the changes from April 1 to June 30.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 31, 2026
It outlines efforts to restore defence cooperation mechanisms that existed during the Afghanistan war and attract investment in the minerals sector, currently dominated by China.
From Barron's ● Jul. 17, 2026
But now the doors were slamming all along the scarlet train, and the blurred outlines of parents were swarming forward for final kisses, last-minute reminders.
From "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" by J.K. Rowling
But analysts say the Arctic could serve as an important future trade route, particularly for China, which has outlined plans for greater access to the region through a "Polar Silk Road".
From Barron's ● Aug. 16, 2026
The state now has 49 days to address the issues outlined in a report released Thursday summarizing the U.S.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 13, 2026
His original zero-based budgeting message had pillars like “give every dollar a job,” and was outlined in 2017’s “You Need a Budget,” a Wall Street Journal bestseller.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 11, 2026
The German truck and bus maker outlined the plans Friday alongside its confirmation of the preliminary second-quarter results and guidance raise announced last month.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 7, 2026
They light up everything as bright as day, their light shines on us and we see our shadows sharply outlined on the ground.
From "All Quiet on the Western Front: A Novel" by Erich Maria Remarque
Right now, public sentiment is still largely against using AI to generate text, although using it for research and outlining is becoming more acceptable.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 17, 2026
He appeared on Crooked Media and NPR and sat for Q&As with Ross Douthat, outlining his worldview for skeptical but receptive hosts.
From Slate ● Aug. 7, 2026
The FDA's own career scientists have published documents outlining concerns that even if peptides are trendy, evidence to support loosening restrictions is still inadequate.
From Barron's ● Jul. 23, 2026
One state representative said this framework will essentially “define the corners of the football field” by outlining how large cuts should be based on reservoir levels.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 23, 2026
Buford listened for the scattered fire of patrols coming in, moving along his flanks, outlining him, but there was nothing.
From "The Killer Angels: The Classic Novel of the Civil War" by Michael Shaara
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.
