abroad

abroad

English

Alternative forms

• abrode (obsolete)
• overbroad (obsolete)

Etymology

First attested in mid 13th century. From Middle English abrood (“broadly widely scattered”), from a- (“on, in”) + brood (“broad”). Equivalent to a- +‎ broad.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /əˈbɹɔːd/
• (US) IPA^(key): /əˈbɹɔd/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɔːd

Adverb

abroad (not comparable)

1. Beyond the bounds of a country; in foreign countries. [from 1350–1470][1]
   • 2013 April 9, Andrei Lankov, “Stay Cool. Call North Korea’s Bluff.”, in New York Times‎:

     A closer look at North Korean history reveals what Pyongyang’s leaders really want their near-farcical belligerence to achieve — a reminder to the world that North Korea exists, and an impression abroad that its leaders are irrational and unpredictable.

   • 1848, Thomas Babington Macaulay, chapter XIV, in The History of England from the Accession of James II‎, volume 3:

     Another prince, deposed by the Revolution, was living abroad.

2. (dated) At large; widely; broadly; over a wide space. [from 1150–1350][1]

   A tree spreads its branches abroad.

   • 1718, Matthew Prior, Solomon, and other Poems on several Occasions:

     Again: The lonely fox roams far abroad, / On ſecret rapine bend and midnight fraud; […]

3. (dated) Without a certain confine; outside the house; away from one's abode. [from 1150–1350)][1]
   • p. 1650,, John Evelyn, William Bray, editor, Diary‎, Frederic Warne and Company, published 1818, entry for 1650 July 7, page 207:

     I went to St. James', where another was preaching in the court abroad.

   • 1891, Rudyard Kipling, The Return of Imray

     She spoke to Strickland in a language of her own, and whenever in her walks abroad she saw things calculated to destroy the peace of Her Majesty the Queen Empress, she returned to her master and gave him information.

   • 1900, Charles W. Chesnutt, chapter 1, in The House Behind the Cedars:

     Was it so irreconcilable, Warwick wondered, as still to peal out the curfew bell, which at nine o'clock at night had clamorously warned all negroes, slave or free, that it was unlawful for them to be abroad after that hour, under penalty of imprisonment or whipping?

   • 1953, Ian Fleming, chapter 6, in Casino Royale, page 34:

     There were very few people abroad and the two men standing quietly under a tree on the opposite side of the boulevard looked out of place.

4. (dated) Before the public at large; throughout society or the world; here and there; moving without restriction. [from late 15^th c.][1]
   • 1654, Richard Whitlock, Zootomia; Or, Observations on the Present Manners of the English:

     This Peece, or Schisme of Suicisme, and Selfishnesse, hath spawned most of the Heresies and Schismes, that are abroad in the World.

   • 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], OCLC 964384981, Mark 1:45:

     But he went out, and beganne to publish it much, and to blase abroad the matter: insomuch that Iesus could no more openly enter into the citie, but was without in desert places: and they came to him from euery quarter.

5. Not on target; astray; in error; confused; dazed. [from early 19^th c.][1]
6. (sports) Played elsewhere than one's home grounds.

Derived terms

• be abroad
• go abroad
• study abroad
• the schoolmaster is abroad

Translations

in foreign countries

Arabic: (where) فِي الْخَارِج‎ (fī l-ḵārij) (place), اِلَى الْخَارِج‎ (ilā l-ḵārij) (direction) Egyptian Arabic: بره‎ (barra) Azerbaijani: xaricdə Belarusian: за мяжо́й (za mjažój) (place), за мяжу́ (za mjažú) (direction) Bulgarian: в чужбина (bg) (v čužbina), в странство (bg) (v stranstvo), зад граница (bg) (zad granica) Catalan: a l'estranger Chinese: Mandarin: 國外／国外 (zh) (guówài), 海外 (zh) (hǎiwài) (overseas) Czech: (place) v zahraničí (cs); (movement to) do zahraničí (cs) Danish: udenlands Dutch: (place) in het buitenland (nl); (movement to) naar het buitenland (nl) Finnish: (in) ulkomailla, (to) ulkomaille French: à l'étranger Georgian: საზღვარგარეთ (sazɣvargaret), უცხოეთში (ucxoetši) German: (place) im Ausland (de); (movement to) ins Ausland (de) Greek: στο εξωτερικό (sto exoterikó) Ancient Greek: ἔκδημος (ékdēmos) Haitian Creole: aletranje Hebrew: חוּ״ל‎ Hindi: (place) विदेश में (hi) (videś mẽ) Hungarian: (place) külföldön (hu); (movement to) külföldre Icelandic: í utlöndum, erlendis Igbo: na ùfèsị Irish: thar sáile, thar lear Italian: all'estero Japanese: 国外に (ja) (こくがいに, kokugai ni), 海外に (ja) (かいがいに, kaigai ni) Korean: 국외 (gugoe), 해외 (ko) (hae'oe) Latvian: (place) ārzemēs; (movement to) uz ārzemēm Maltese: msiefer Manx: ass y cheer Ngazidja Comorian: udjenini Norman: à l'êtrangi Norwegian: Bokmål: utenlands (no), i utlandet Nynorsk: utanlands, i utlandet Old English: ūtanlandes Polish: (place) za granicą (pl); (movement to) za granicę (pl) Portuguese: (location) no exterior (pt), no estrangeiro (pt); (movement) ao exterior (pt), ao estrangeiro (pt); (location overseas) no ultramar (pt), no além-mar (pt); (movement overseas) ao ultramar (pt), ao além-mar (pt) Russian: (place) за грани́цей (za granícej), за рубежо́м (za rubežóm), (direction) за грани́цу (za granícu), за рубе́ж (za rubéž), за кордо́ном (za kordónom) (colloquial), на чужби́не (na čužbíne) (colloquial) Scottish Gaelic: (location) thall thairis, (movement) a-null thairis Serbo-Croatian: Croatian: inozemstvo (sh) n Cyrillic: иностранство n Roman: inostranstvo n, Spanish: (place) en el extranjero, en el exterior; (direction) al extranjero Swedish: utomlands (sv), utrikes (sv) Ukrainian: за кордо́ном (za kordónom) (place), за кордо́н (za kordón) (direction)

at large; widely; broadly; over a wide space

Bulgarian: навсякъде (bg) (navsjakǎde) Dutch: wijd uiteen, ver van elkaar Finnish: laajalla, laajalle French: de tous côtés (fr), dans toutes les directions Latvian: plaši, visur Portuguese: amplamente (pt), largamente (pt) Russian: широко́ (ru) (širokó), повсю́ду (ru) (povsjúdu), везде́ (ru) (vezdé), вширь (ru) (vširʹ) Spanish: por todas partes, en todas direcciones

without a certain confine; outside the house

Bulgarian: на открито (bg) (na otkrito), извън къщи (izvǎn kǎšti) Dutch: in het rond, naar alle kanten, buitenshuis (nl) Finnish: ulkona (fi) French: dehors (fr) Latvian: ārā, ārpus Portuguese: fora de casa Russian: (where) снару́жи (ru) (snarúži), на у́лице (na úlice), (where to), нару́жу (ru) (narúžu), на у́лицу (na úlicu) Spanish: al exterior

before the public or society

astray

Dutch: verward (nl), de kluts kwijt Finnish: eksyksissä (fi)

played elsewhere

Dutch: op verplaatsing, uit- Finnish: vieras- French: à l'extérieur (fr)

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

Esperanto: (please verify) eksterlande Ido: (please verify) exterlande (io) Interlingua: (please verify) al estraniero Italian: (please verify) all'estero Romanian: în străinătate Swedish: (please verify) utomlands (sv) Welsh: (please verify) tramor (cy)

Noun

abroad

1. (rare, Scotland) Countries or lands abroad. [First attested in the mid 19^th century.][1][2]
   • 1929, King George V, widely (and variously) quoted:

     I hate abroad, abroad’s bloody.

   • c. 1991, New Statesman & Society, volume 3–4, page 180:

     I am not, however, a xenophobe: obviously, abroad has some good ideas—arranged marriages, violent revolutions and so on.

   • 2001 March 13, The Earl of Onslow, speaking in the House of Lords, quoted in Hansard:

     That is not a xenophobic remark. I am a xenophiliac; I love abroad. I love foreigners. I just do not like the way that they are running the European agricultural policy.

Derived terms

• near abroad

Translations

countries or lands abroad

Basque: atzerri Bulgarian: чужбина (bg) f (čužbina) Catalan: estranger (ca) m Chinese: Mandarin: 海外 (zh) (hǎiwài), 國外／国外 (zh) (guówài) Danish: udland (da) n Dutch: buitenland (nl) n Finnish: ulkomaat French: l'étranger (fr) m German: Ausland (de) n Hebrew: חוּץ לָאָרֶץ‎ m (ḥutz laáretz), חו״ל‎ (ḥul) Hindi: विदेश (hi) m (videś) Hungarian: külföld (hu) Japanese: 海外 (ja) (かいがい, kaigai), 外国 (ja) (こくがい, kokugai), 在外 (ざいがい, zaigai) Latvian: ārzemes f pl Polish: zagranica (pl) f Portuguese: exterior (pt) m, ultramar (pt) m, além-mar (pt) m Russian: заграни́ца (ru) f (zagraníca), зарубе́жье (ru) n (zarubéžʹje) Turkish: yurtdışı (tr) Ukrainian: закордо́н (uk) m (zakordón)

Preposition

abroad

1. Throughout, over.

Translations

throughout

Arabic: فِي اَلْخَارِج‎ (fī l-ḵārij) Egyptian Arabic: برا‎ (barrā) Dutch: alover, over de ganse lijn Finnish: pitkin (fi)

References

1. Lesley Brown, editor-in-chief; William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, editors (2002), “abroad”, in The Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles, 5th edition, Oxford; New York, N.Y.: Oxford University Press, →ISBN, page 8.
2. “abroad, n.” in the Dictionary of the Scots Language, Edinburgh: Scottish Language Dictionaries.

• "Now abroad has entered English as a noun" - The New York Times, "ON LANGUAGE; The Near Abroad", William Safire, May 22, 1994, quoting Christian Caryl

Anagrams

• A board, Baroda, aboard, aborad