foreign
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foreign
- /ˈfɒɹɪn/ UK
- /ˈfɒɹən/ UK
- /ˈfɔɹɪn/ US
- /ˈfɔɹən/ US
- /ˈfɑɹɪn/ US
- /ˈfɑɹɪn/
- /ˈfɔɹən/ Australia
- /ˈfɔː.ɾɪn/ India
- /ˈfɑː.ɾɪn/ India
Rhymes with -ɒɹən, -ɒɹɪn
Where it comes from
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).
adjective more foreign · most foreign · forane · forraine
- Located outside a country or place, especially one's own. foreign markets; foreign soil
- 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
- Relating to a different nation. foreign policy; foreign navies
- Not characteristic of or naturally taken in by an organism or system. foreign body; foreign substance; foreign gene; foreign species
- Alien; strange; uncharacteristic. It was completely foreign to their way of thinking.
- Held at a distance; excluded; exiled. Kept him a foreign man still; which so grieved him, / That he ran mad and died.
- From a different legal jurisdiction (state, province), even if within the same country.
- Belonging to a different organization, company etc. My bank charges me $2.50 every time I use a foreign ATM.
- Outside, outdoors, outdoor.
Similar: overseas, international, extraneous, acquired, additional, adventitious, ascititious, foreign, intrusive, outlandish, strange, supplemental, tramontane · Opposite: domestic, native, indigenous, innate, natural
noun foreigns · forane · forraine
- A foreigner: a person from another country. The messaging instructions come in two sets: one for domestics, another for the foreigns.
- An outsider: a person from another place or group.
- A non-guildmember.
- A foreign ship.
- A foreign whip, a car produced abroad. In the foreign switching lanes and we riding […] A island I wanna live somewhere silent I'm shining I'm bout to flood my neck with diamonds Yeah I've been spitting facts these niggas lying I'm driving stolens, foreigns, yeah I'm riding
-
An outhouse; an outdoor toilet.
Similar: backhouse, backside, bog, boggard, boghouse, carsey, chamber foreign, common house, commons, Cousin John, craphouse, danna
- An area of a community that lies outside the legal town or parish limits.
- An area of a monastery outside its legal limits or serving as an outer court.
- Short for various phrases, including foreign language, foreign parts, and foreign service.
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: foreign-born, abroad, extraneous, extrinsic, outside, exotic, overseas, established, adventive, strange, adulterant, nonnative, unnaturalized, international, alien, external
adjective
Similar: overseas, international, extraneous, acquired, additional, adventitious, ascititious, foreign, intrusive, outlandish, strange, supplemental, tramontane · Opposite: domestic, native, indigenous, innate, natural
Translations
Every language
adj located outside one's own country or place
| Español | extraño, extranjero, foraño, foráneo |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 외래(外來)의 oerae-ui |
| 日本語 | 外来の gairai no |
| 中文 | 外國的 /外国的 wàiguóde, 外來的 /外来的 wàilái de |
| हिन्दी | परदेसी pardesī |
| Português | estrangeiro |
| Français | étranger |
| Deutsch | fremd, ausländisch |
| Italiano | straniero |
| Ελληνικά | ξένος xénos |
| Русский | иностра́нный inostránnyj, зарубе́жный zarubéžnyj, инозе́мный inozémnyj, заграни́чный zagraníčnyj, чужезе́мный čužezémnyj |
| Tiếng Việt | nước ngoài |
| العربية | أَجْنَبِيّ ʔajnabiyy |
| עברית | זר zar |
adj originating from or characteristic of a different country
| Español | extranjero, forastero, foráneo, extranjis, meteco (despective) |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 외국(外國)의 oegug-ui, 다른 나라의 dareun nara-ui |
| 日本語 | 外国の gaikoku no |
| 中文 | 外國的 /外国的 wàiguó de |
| हिन्दी | विदेशी videśī, बिदेसी bidesī, परदेसी pardesī, विलायती vilāytī |
| Português | estrangeiro |
| Français | étranger, étrangère |
| Deutsch | ausländisch, fremd |
| Italiano | straniero, straniera |
| Ελληνικά | αλλοεθνής alloethnís, αλλοδαπός allodapós, ξένος xénos |
| Română | străin |
| Русский | иностра́нный inostránnyj, зарубе́жный zarubéžnyj, инозе́мный inozémnyj, заграни́чный zagraníčnyj |
| Tiếng Việt | ngoại quốc, nước ngoài |
| العربية | غَرِيب ḡarīb, أَجْنَبِيّ ʔajnabiyy |
| עברית | זָר zar |
adj relating to a different nation
| Español | extranjero, exterior |
|---|---|
| Português | estrangeiro, exterior |
| Русский | вне́шний vnéšnij, иностра́нный inostránnyj, зарубе́жный zarubéžnyj, инозе́мный inozémnyj, заграни́чный zagraníčnyj |
adj not characteristic of or naturally taken in by an organism or system
| Español | extraño |
|---|---|
| Português | estranho |
| Русский | иноро́дный inoródnyj |
Talk about this word "foreign." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/foreign. Accessed 5 Nov. 2026. foreign. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/foreign "foreign." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 5, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/foreign.Cite this
@misc{foreign_2026,
title = {foreign},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/foreign},
urldate = {2026-11-05}
}
