foreign

English Online Dictionary. What means foreign‎? What does foreign mean?

English

Alternative forms

• forane, forraine (obsolete)

Etymology

From Middle English foreyn, forein, from Old French forain, from Vulgar Latin *forānus (“outsider, outlander”), from Latin forās (“outside, outdoors”) or forīs (“outside, outdoors”).

Displaced native Old English elþēodiġ (“foreign”) and now-dialectal English fremd, from Old English fremde (“strange, foreign”).

The silent -g- added perhaps by analogy with reign (compare also sovereign which was similarly altered).

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /ˈfɒɹɪn/, /ˈfɒɹən/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /ˈfɔɹɪn/, /ˈfɔɹən/, /ˈfɑɹɪn/
• (New York City, Philadelphia) IPA^(key): /ˈfɑɹɪn/
• (General Australian) IPA^(key): /ˈfɔɹən/
• Rhymes: -ɒɹən, -ɒɹɪn
• Hyphenation: for‧eign

Adjective

foreign (comparative more foreign, superlative most foreign)

2. Located outside a country or place, especially one's own.

   foreign markets; foreign soil

4. Originating from, characteristic of, belonging to, or being a citizen of a country or place other than the one under discussion.

   foreign car; foreign word; foreign citizen; foreign trade

6. Relating to a different nation.

   foreign policy; foreign navies

8. Not characteristic of or naturally taken in by an organism or system.

   foreign body; foreign substance; foreign gene; foreign species

10. (with to, formerly with from) Alien; strange; uncharacteristic.
12. (obsolete) Held at a distance; excluded; exiled.
14. (US, state law) From a different one of the states of the United States, as of a state of residence or incorporation.
16. Belonging to a different organization, company etc.

18. (obsolete) Outside, outdoors, outdoor.

Synonyms

• (from a different country): overseas, international
• (strange): alien, fremd
• (in a place where it does not belong): extraneous

Antonyms

• (antonym(s) of “from a different country”): domestic
• (antonym(s) of “not characteristic”): native
• (antonym(s) of “native to an area”): indigenous

Derived terms

Translations

Noun

foreign (plural foreigns)

1. A foreign person, particularly:
   1. (now informal) A foreigner: a person from another country.
   2. (obsolete) An outsider: a person from another place or group.
   3. (obsolete) A non-guildmember.
2. A foreign vehicle, particularly:
   1. (obsolete) A foreign ship.
   2. (slang) A foreign whip, a car produced abroad.
3. (obsolete) An outhouse; an outdoor toilet.

   Synonyms: see Thesaurus:outhouse
4. A foreign area, particularly:
   1. (now dialect) An area of a community that lies outside the legal town or parish limits.
   2. (obsolete, usually in the plural) An area of a monastery outside its legal limits or serving as an outer court.
5. Short for various phrases, including foreign language, foreign parts, and foreign service.

Translations

References

• "foreign, adj. and n." in the Oxford English Dictionary (1897), Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Anagrams

• Rengifo