exterior

English

Alternative forms

• exteriour (obsolete)

Etymology

From Latin exterior

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /ɪkˈstɪəɹɪə/, /ɛkˈstɪəɹɪə/
• (US) IPA^(key): /ɪkˈstɪɹiɚ/, /ɛkˈstɪɹiɚ/
• Rhymes: -ɪəɹiə(ɹ)

• Audio (Southern England)

  (file)

Adjective

exterior (not comparable)

1. Relating to the outside parts or surface of something.

   the exterior part of a sphere

   • c. 1599–1602 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Hamlet, Prince of Denmarke”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies  (First Folio), London: Isaac Iaggard, and Ed Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, :

     Sith nor the exterior nor the inward man / Resemble that it was.

2. Being from outside a country; foreign.

   the exterior relations of a state or kingdom

3. Outdoor.

Antonyms

• interior

Derived terms

Translations

Noun

exterior (plural exteriors)

1. The outside part, parts or surface of something.

   The sticker was attached to the exterior of the package

   • 1983, Richard Ellis, The Book of Sharks, Knopf, →ISBN, page 31:

     Before dissecting a shark to see how it manages to function so effectively, let us first examine its exterior.

   • 2014 October 21, Oliver Brown, “Oscar Pistorius jailed for five years – sport afforded no protection against his tragic fallibilities: Bladerunner's punishment for killing Reeva Steenkamp is but a frippery when set against the burden that her bereft parents, June and Barry, must carry [print version: No room for sentimentality in this tragedy, 13 September 2014, p. S22]”, in The Daily Telegraph (Sport)‎:

     [I]n the 575 days since [Oscar] Pistorius shot dead his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp, there has been an unseemly scramble to construct revisionist histories, to identify evidence beneath that placid exterior of a pugnacious, hair-trigger personality.

   Antonyms: inside, interior

2. Foreign lands.

   She is our new minister of the exterior

   Antonym: interior

Translations

See also

• external

Catalan

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin exteriōrem.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (Central)
• IPA^(key): (Balearic)
• IPA^(key): (Valencian)

Adjective

exterior m or f (masculine and feminine plural exteriors)

1. exterior (relating to the outside parts or surface of something)

   Antonym: interior

2. exterior, foreign

   Synonym: estranger

   Antonym: interior

Derived terms

• exterioritat
• exterioritzar
• exteriorment

Noun

exterior m (plural exteriors)

1. exterior (the outside part, parts or surface of something)

   Antonym: interior

2. the exterior (foreign lands)

   Synonym: estranger

   Antonym: interior

Further reading

• “exterior” in Diccionari de la llengua catalana, segona edició, Institut d’Estudis Catalans.
• “exterior”, in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana, 2024
• “exterior” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.
• “exterior” in Diccionari català-valencià-balear, Antoni Maria Alcover and Francesc de Borja Moll, 1962.

Latin

Pronunciation

• (Classical) IPA^(key): /ekˈste.ri.or/,
• (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): /ekˈste.ri.or/,

Adjective

exterior (neuter exterius); third declension

1. comparative degree of exter; outward, outer, exterior

Declension

Third-declension comparative adjective.

Descendants

References

• “exterior”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• “exterior”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
• exterior in Charles du Fresne du Cange’s Glossarium Mediæ et Infimæ Latinitatis (augmented edition with additions by D. P. Carpenterius, Adelungius and others, edited by Léopold Favre, 1883–1887)
• exterior in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette.

Portuguese

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin exterior.

Pronunciation

• Hyphenation: ex‧te‧ri‧or

Adjective

exterior m or f (plural exteriores)

1. exterior (located in the outside)

   Antonym: interior

   A parte exterior do carro.

   The outside of the car.

2. foreign (relating to foreign countries)

   Qual é a política exterior do Brazil?

   What is Brazil’s foreign policy?

3. (formal) outwith; not encompassed by; not related to or covered by

   Este conteúdo é exterior à ementa deste curso.

   This topic is outwith the syllabus of this course.

Derived terms

• exteriormente

Related terms

• exterioridade

Noun

exterior m (plural exteriores)

1. outside (outer surface)

   Antonym: interior

   Contratamos um pintor para pintar apenas o exterior da casa, o interior pintaremos nós mesmo.

   We hired a painter to paint the outside of the house; we will paint the inside ourselves.

2. outside (the space beyond some limit or boundary)

   Não deixe nada no exterior deste círculo.

   Don’t leave anything outside this circle.

Noun

exterior m (uncountable)

1. exterior; territory of foreign countries

   Synonym: estrangeiro

   Ela mora no exterior desde criança.

   She has lived abroad since she was a child.

Further reading

• “exterior” in Dicionário Priberam da Língua Portuguesa.

Romanian

Etymology

Borrowed from French extérieur and Latin exterior.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˌeks.te.riˈor/

Noun

exterior n (plural exterioare)

1. exterior

Declension

Adjective

exterior m or n (feminine singular exterioară, masculine plural exteriori, feminine and neuter plural exterioare)

1. external, outer

Declension

Spanish

Etymology

From Latin exterior.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /eɡsteˈɾjoɾ/
• Rhymes: -oɾ
• Syllabification: ex‧te‧rior

Adjective

exterior m or f (masculine and feminine plural exteriores)

1. external, outer

   Antonym: interior

Noun

exterior m (plural exteriores)

1. outside

   Antonym: interior

2. abroad

Derived terms

Related terms

Further reading

• “exterior”, in Diccionario de la lengua española, Vigésima tercera edición, Real Academia Española, 2014