foreign

CEFRA2

/ˈfɒɹɪn/

adjective

Türkçe translations

Translating…

In plain English

  1. 01

    adjective

    From another country or unfamiliar to the people concerned.

  2. 02

    adjective

    Extra detail

    Originating from, characteristic of, belonging to, or being a citizen of a country or place other than the one under discussion.

Examples

  • I find foreign languages very interesting.

  • What foreign languages do you speak?

At a glance

Sits at A2 on the CEFR scale

Senses
5
Parts of speech
1
Citations
5
Synonyms
5

Also pronounced

  • /-ɛ(j)n/
  • /ˈfɔrɪn/

Deep Dive

adjective

Extra meanings

  1. Relating to a different nation.

  2. Located outside a country or place, especially one's own.

  3. Not characteristic of or naturally taken in by an organism or system.

More examples

In context

  • foreign car; foreign word; foreign citizen; foreign trade

  • Foreign people intrigue me.

  • He liked visiting foreign cities.

Synonyms

Antonyms

Quick test

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Nearby

Origin

adjective

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).