abroad

adv, noun, prep and 1 more — 9 senses

abroad

adv

UK /əˈbɹɔːd/ · AU, UK, NZ /əˈbɹoːd/

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

1

Postpositional Beyond the bounds of a country; in foreign countries.

  • 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.2013 April 9, Andrei Lankov, “Stay Cool. Call North Korea’s Bluff.”, in New York Times:
  • Another prince, deposed by the Revolution, was living abroad.1848, Thomas Babington Macaulay, chapter XIV, in The History of England from the Accession of James II, volume 3:
2

Dated, Postpositional At large; widely; broadly; over a wide space.

  • A tree spreads its branches abroad.
  • "Faither!" I cried as I undid the bolt and pushed the leaves of the door abroad, "Faither, ye are welcome hame!"1895, Samuel Rutherford Crockett, The Men of the Moss-hags, page 28:
3

Dated, Postpositional Without a certain confine; outside the house; away from one's abode.

  • I went to St. James', where another was preaching in the court abroad.p. 1650, John Evelyn, edited by William Bray, Diary, Frederic Warne and Company, published 1818, entry for 1650 July 7, page 207:
  • Again: The lonely fox roams far abroad, / On ſecret rapine bent and midnight fraud; […]1718, Matthew Prior, Solomon, and other Poems on several Occasions:
4 more examples
  • 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.1891, Rudyard Kipling, The Return of Imray:
  • 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?1900, Charles W. Chesnutt, chapter 1, in The House Behind the Cedars:
  • But the time was soon over, and before he realized it Tarzan found himself abroad again. Several times De Coude had called, and when he found that Tarzan was anxious for employment of some nature he promised to see what could be done to find a berth for him.1913 June–December, Edgar Rice Burroughs, “A Duel”, in The Return of Tarzan, New York, N.Y.: A[lbert] L[evi] Burt Company, […], published March 1915, →OCLC, page 83:
  • 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.1953, Ian Fleming, chapter 6, in Casino Royale, page 34:
4

Dated, Postpositional Before the public at large; throughout society or the world; here and there; moving without restriction.

  • This Peece, or Schisme of Suicisme, and Selfishnesse, hath spawned most of the Heresies and Schismes, that are abroad in the World.1654, Richard Whitlock, Zootomia; Or, Observations on the Present Manners of the English:
  • 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.1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Mark 1:45:
5

Postpositional Not on target; astray; in error; confused; dazed.

6

Hobbies, Lifestyle, Sports Postpositional Played elsewhere than one's home grounds.

Derived terms
abroadness, be abroad, go abroad, study abroad, the schoolmaster is abroad

abroad

noun

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

1

Scotland, Postpositional, Rare Countries or lands abroad.

  • I hate abroad, abroad’s bloody.1929, King George V, widely (and variously) quoted
  • I am not, however, a xenophobe: obviously, abroad has some good ideas—arranged marriages, violent revolutions and so on.c. 1991, New Statesman & Society, volumes 3–4, page 180:
1 more example
  • 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.2001 March 13, The Earl of Onslow, speaking in the House of Lords, quoted in Hansard
Derived terms
near abroad

abroad

prep

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

1

Postpositional Throughout, over.

abroad

adj

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

1

Nonstandard, Postpositional International.

Chiefly non-native speakers' English

  • [...] much shorter than an abroad trip at eight nights although the average spending per person night is only slightly less on a US trip than an abroad trip, $37 compared with $41. Around half of Canadian trips to other countries are to Europe.1991, Alan Jefferson, Leonard John Lickorish, Marketing Tourism: A Practical Guide:
  • [...] an abroad trip was going to raise some heat in the town, amongst our relatives. My family has always been the pioneers of middle-classism. My mother has still never owned a diamond.2018 January 25, Shalini & Brajesh, My Traditional Dil-E-Maa, Notion Press, →ISBN:
3 more examples
  • [...] as her father had an abroad trip, he had dropped her mother here.2018 April 12, Beena Sunil, Thorns of Love, Notion Press, →ISBN:
  • Sreeja argued with Lalit to reduce his abroad trip and Lalit did listen to her. [...] Sreeja started to feel lonely even when Lalit was around. At certain point Lalit couldn't take it anymore and left for months to an abroad trip.2022 February 19, Deepika Kathiresan, Yuva Janani, Felicible Paradise, Unvoiced Heart, page 31:
  • He had contracted the disease during an abroad trip to draw up an agreement for the mass production of low-power engines.2022 June 24, Alessandro Ferrari, Pietro Pizzo, Injection Technologies and Mixture Formation Strategies For Spark Ignition and Dual-Fuel Engines, SAE International, →ISBN, page 3:

Entry derived from the Wiktionary, under licence CC BY-SA 4.0 — list of authors.