external
Pluralexternals
- 1On the outside of something, not inside it.
Like the skin of an apple: the part that is on the outside.
The external walls of the house need new paint.
The bag has an external pocket for your phone.
UsageUsually before a noun: external walls. The opposite is internal.
Similarexterior, outer, outside, outward
Oppositeinternal, interior, inner, inside
Note
- 2Coming from outside a group, company, or thing, not from inside it.
The school hired an external company to clean the building.
Our team asked for external help with the difficult project.
UsageSay external help or external funding.
Similaroutside, independent
- 3Coming from outside something and not a real or needed part of it.
Money was only an external reward, because she painted for the love of it.
His good mood did not depend on external things like the weather.
UsageSay external factors or external rewards.
Similarextrinsic, extraneous, accidental
Oppositeintrinsic, inherent, essential, internal
Note
- 4In computing, outside the main computer or its memory, such as a separate plug-in drive.
Like a trailer hooked to a car: it adds space, but it is not part of the car.
She saved her photos on an external hard drive.
Plug the external keyboard into the side of the laptop.
UsageSay an external hard drive.
Note
- 5
- 6On or near the surface of the body.
The nurse found no external injuries after the fall.
The external part of the ear collects sound and sends it inside.
UsageSay external injuries or external bleeding.
Similarouter, superficial
Note
- 7Real outside your mind, not just something you think or imagine.
She wondered if the colors she saw matched the external world.
Dreams feel real, but they are not part of external reality.
UsageSay the external world.
Oppositesubjective, mental, internal
- 8
Less common meanings
- 9Only looking like something on the outside, without being real.
His external calm hid how scared he really felt.
Her kindness was only external, and it vanished when no one was watching.
Similarsuperficial
- 10The outside look or surface details of something, not what it is really like inside.
Like a book's cover: it shows you the outside, not the story inside.
Try to look past the externals and see the real person.
Don't judge people by externals like clothes and hair.
UsageSay judge by externals or look past the externals.
Similartrappings, appearances
Oppositeessentials, substance
Note
- 11For students who take a university's exams but do not live or study at the university itself.
As an external student, she studied at home and traveled in only for the exams.
The university lets external students borrow library books by mail.
UsageSay an external student or an external degree.
Similarextramural
Note
- 12In computer programs, a named value kept outside any one function, often in another file, so other parts can use it.
Like a blank on a form: the form names the blank, but someone else fills in the answer.
The variable is declared as an external because another file defines it.
The linker could not find a definition for one external in the code.
Note
Showing meanings only.
Practice
Can you tell the meanings of external apart? Answer 3 quick questions from this page, or write your own sentence and AI will check it.
Origin
From Latin externus, meaning "outward" or "outside."
Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 2 facts
- External derives from Latin externus. en.wiktionary.org
- Latin externus means outward or outside. en.wiktionary.org