EXTERNAL

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does external mean? 

• EXTERNAL (noun)
  The noun EXTERNAL has 1 sense:

1. outward features

  Familiarity information: EXTERNAL used as a noun is very rare.

• EXTERNAL (adjective)
  The adjective EXTERNAL has 4 senses:

1. happening or arising or located outside or beyond some limits or especially surface

2. coming from the outside

3. from or between other countries

4. purely outward or superficial

  Familiarity information: EXTERNAL used as an adjective is uncommon.

 Dictionary entry details 

• EXTERNAL (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

Outward features

Classified under:

Nouns denoting cognitive processes and contents

Context example:

he enjoyed the solemn externals of religion

Hypernyms ("external" is a kind of...):

characteristic; feature (a prominent attribute or aspect of something)

• EXTERNAL (adjective)

Sense 1

Meaning:

Happening or arising or located outside or beyond some limits or especially surface

Context example:

external pressures

Similar:

outer (being on or toward the outside of the body)

outside (originating or belonging beyond some bounds)

Also:

outside (relating to or being on or near the outer side or limit)

Attribute:

position; spatial relation (the spatial property of a place where or way in which something is situated)

Antonym:

internal (happening or arising or located within some limits or especially surface)

Derivation:

externality (the quality or state of being outside or directed toward or relating to the outside or exterior)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Coming from the outside

Synonyms:

external; extraneous; outside

Context example:

disdaining outside pressure groups

Similar:

extrinsic (not forming an essential part of a thing or arising or originating from the outside)

Derivation:

externality (the quality or state of being outside or directed toward or relating to the outside or exterior)

Sense 3

Meaning:

From or between other countries

Synonyms:

external; international; outside

Context example:

developing nations need outside help

Similar:

foreign (of concern to or concerning the affairs of other nations (other than your own))

Sense 4

Meaning:

Purely outward or superficial

Context example:

an external concern for reputation

Similar:

outward (relating to physical reality rather than with thoughts or the mind)

 Context examples 

The genome is composed of linear, double-stranded DNA and the virus is capable of infection either with or without its external membrane envelope.

(Molluscipoxvirus, NCI Thesaurus)

The ability to form a stable membrane to separate the internal environment from the external one is important because it provides a means to contain chemicals long enough to allow them to interact.

(NASA Finds Moon of Saturn Has Chemical That Could Form ‘Membranes’, NASA)

The advantage of this mechanism is that the long-term maintenance of body fluids isn’t as dependent on external water sources as once believed.

(How the body regulates salt levels, NIH)

“We believe that the link between radio frequency radiation and tumors in male rats is real, and the external experts agreed,” said Bucher.

(High exposure to radio frequency radiation associated with cancer, National Institutes of Health)

Some observations indicate Ceres may be a volatile-rich world that is not dependent on current-day external sources.

(Dawn Maps Ceres Craters Where Ice Can Accumulate, NASA)

A humanized monoclonal antibody (MoAb) against the external domain of the Prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA), overexpressed in the malignant prostate and its metastases.

(Monoclonal Antibody huJ591, NCI Thesaurus)

A specialized structure that serves as an organ of the sense of smell as well as part of the respiratory system; the term includes both the external nose and the nasal cavity.

(Murine Nose, NLM, Medical Subject Headings)

A murine IgG monoclonal antibody against the external domain of the prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA), overexpressed in the malignant prostate and its metastases.

(Monoclonal Antibody muJ591, NCI Thesaurus)

Scientists have identified a subtype of immune cell that drives the production of antibodies (link is external) associated with anaphylaxis and other allergic reactions.

(Scientists discover immune cell subtype in mice that drives allergic reactions, National Institutes of Health)

Further, other poorly observed external factors, such as temperatures, winds, waves and ocean currents, might play an important role in rift growth.

(Massive Iceberg Breaks Off from Antarctica, NASA)