What does "foreign" mean?
A foreign person; A foreigner: a person from another country.
Foreign
/ˈfɒɹɪn/ adj, noun, slang
adj, noun, slang ·Very common ·Middle school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A foreign person; A foreigner: a person from another country.
- Grammar: foreign is listed as adj, noun, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: alien, extraneous, strange, accidental.
- Useful contrasts: domestic, indigenous, innate.
- Usage evidence: I find foreign languages very interesting.
How to use "foreign"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "foreign" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "foreign" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "foreign" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "foreign" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "foreign" is acting as adj, noun, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "alien" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "foreign", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A foreign person; A foreigner: a person from another country. informal
"The messaging instructions come in two sets: one for domestics, another for the foreigns."
- 2 A foreign person; An outsider: a person from another place or group. obsolete
- 3 A foreign person; A non-guildmember. obsolete
- 4 A foreign vehicle; A foreign ship. obsolete
- 5 A foreign vehicle; A foreign whip, a car produced abroad. slang
"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"
Show 4 more definitions
- 6 An outhouse; an outdoor toilet. obsolete
"Ful foule ys þat forreyne Þat ys comoun for al certeyne."
- 7 A foreign area; An area of a community that lies outside the legal town or parish limits. dialectal
- 8 A foreign area; An area of a monastery outside its legal limits or serving as an outer court. obsolete, plural-normally
- 9 Short for various phrases, including foreign language, foreign parts, and foreign service. abbreviation, alt-of
Adjective
- 1 Located outside a country or place, especially one's own.
"foreign markets; foreign soil"
- 2 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"
- 3 Relating to a different nation.
"foreign policy; foreign navies"
- 4 Not characteristic of or naturally taken in by an organism or system.
"foreign body; foreign substance; foreign gene; foreign species"
- 5 Alien; strange; uncharacteristic.
"It was completely foreign to their way of thinking."
Show 4 more definitions
- 6 Held at a distance; excluded; exiled. obsolete
"Kept him a foreign man still; which so grieved him, / That he ran mad and died."
- 7 From a different legal jurisdiction (state, province), even if within the same country. Canada, US
- 8 Belonging to a different organization, company etc.
"My bank charges me $2.50 every time I use a foreign ATM."
- 9 Outside, outdoors, outdoor. obsolete
Adjective
- 1 relating to or originating in or characteristic of another place or part of the world wordnet
- 2 of concern to or concerning the affairs of other nations (other than your own) wordnet
- 3 not contained in or deriving from the essential nature of something wordnet
- 4 not belonging to that in which it is contained; introduced from an outside source wordnet
Antonyms
Example
"I find foreign languages very interesting."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "foreign"?
Common synonyms include: alien, extraneous, strange, accidental, acquired, additional.
How do you use "foreign" in a sentence?
I find foreign languages very interesting.
How do you pronounce "foreign"?
Pronounced /ˈfɒɹɪn/.
Etymology
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).