What does "outlandish" mean?
A foreign language.
Outlandish
/ˌaʊtˈlændɪʃ/ adj, noun
adj, noun ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A foreign language.
- Grammar: outlandish is listed as adj, noun.
- Nearest alternatives: bizarre, eccentric, absurd, alien.
- Useful contrasts: inlandish, orthodox, conservative.
- Usage evidence: If you go drinking with Tom, be prepared to listen to some pretty outlandish cock and bull stories.
How to use "outlandish"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "outlandish" 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 "outlandish" 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 "outlandish" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "outlandish" 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 "outlandish" is acting as adj, noun 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 "bizarre" 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 "outlandish", 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 language. obsolete
"[H]ow soon God from Heaven had sent His fiery tongues upon His Apostles, the devil from hell presently sent for his fiery tongues, and put them in the mouths of his apostles, to disgrace and scoff at those of God's sending. […] These good fellows have been at it, and now they can speak nothing but outlandish. Some little broken Greek or Latin they had, and now out it comes."
Adjective
- 1 Of or from a foreign country; not indigenous or native; alien, foreign. archaic
"[W]e haue bꝛokẽ thy ſtatutes ⁊ cõmaundementes agayne, ⁊ mengled o^ꝛ ſelues wᵗ the vnclẽnes of the outlandiſh heithen."
- 2 Appearing to be foreign; strange, unfamiliar. broadly
"I believe, Lady, your Ladyſhip obſerved a young VVoman at Church yeſterday at Even-ſong, vvho vvas dreſt in one of your outlandiſh Garments; I think I have ſeen your Ladyſhip in ſuch a one. Hovvever, in the Country, ſuch Dreſſes are / Rara avis in Terris, nigroq; ſimillima Cycno, / That is, Madam, as much to ſay, / A rare Bird upon the Earth, and very like a black Svvan."
- 3 Greatly different from common experience; bizarre, outrageous, strange. broadly
"The rock star wore black with outlandish pink and green spiked hair."
- 4 Of a place: far away from where most people are located; in the middle of nowhere, out of the way, remote. broadly, derogatory
"It will be very convenient to have a medical man—if he is clever—in one's own parish. I get dreadfully nervous sometimes, living in such an outlandish place; and Sherton is so far to send to."
Adjective
- 1 conspicuously or grossly unconventional or unusual wordnet
Example
"If you go drinking with Tom, be prepared to listen to some pretty outlandish cock and bull stories."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "outlandish"?
Common synonyms include: bizarre, eccentric, absurd, alien, alien, animal.
How do you use "outlandish" in a sentence?
If you go drinking with Tom, be prepared to listen to some pretty outlandish cock and bull stories.
How do you pronounce "outlandish"?
Pronounced /ˌaʊtˈlændɪʃ/.
Etymology
The adjective is derived from Middle English outlandisch, outlondish (“foreign”), from Old English ūtlendisċ (“foreign; strange, outlandish”), from Proto-West Germanic *ūtlandisk, from Proto-Germanic *ūtlandiskaz, from *ūtlandą (“(adjective) alien, foreign; relating to outlying land; (noun) foreign land; outlying land”) + *-iskaz (suffix forming adjectives from nouns with the sense ‘characteristic of; pertaining to’). *Ūtlandą is derived from *ūt- (suffix meaning ‘beyond; external to, on the outside of’) (from Proto-Indo-European *úd (“away; out, outward; upwards”)) + *landą (“area of ground, land”) (from Proto-Indo-European *lendʰ- (“heath; land”)). By surface analysis, outland + -ish. The noun is derived from the adjective. Cognates * Danish udenlandsk (“foreign, non-domestic”) * Dutch uitlands (dated) (now buitenlands (“foreign, non-domestic”)), Dutch uitlandig (“absent from the home country”) (now chiefly Suriname) * Faroese útlendskur (“foreign, non-domestic”) * German ausländisch (“foreign, non-domestic”) * Icelandic útlenskur (“foreign”) * Swedish utländsk (“foreign, non-domestic”)