Outdoors
/ˌaʊtˈdɔːrz/noun
In or into the open air, outside buildings or enclosed spaces.
Did you know?“Outdoors” began as the literal phrase “out doors,” treating doors as the boundary between protected human space and the wider world.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*ud-
“Up, out, or away; the ancient root behind English “out.””
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*dʰwer-
“Door or doorway; a passage through an enclosure.”
Old English
Old English
ūt dūre
“Outside the door or outdoors; an early form of the phrase.”
Middle English
Middle English
out dores
“Out of doors; outside buildings.”
16th Century
English
outdoors
“The open air or the space outside buildings, increasingly written as one word.”
Modern English
English
outdoors
“In or into the open air.”