abroad

adverb or adjective

ə-ˈbrȯd 

1

: beyond the boundaries of one's country : in or to a foreign country

traveling abroad

hopes to study abroad next year

both at home and abroad

a family that came here from abroad [=from a foreign country] several years ago

2

: over a wide area : widely

wolves venturing abroad in increasing numbers

3

old-fashioned : away from one's home

doesn't go walking abroad at night

4

formal : in wide circulation : about

There are rumors abroad that the company is in trouble.

5

: wide of the mark : astray

Examples of abroad in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The following year in 2022, expert glassmakers and locksmiths from all across the country — and even several from abroad — arrived to begin restoring the cathedral’s famous stained glass windows. —Toria Sheffield, People.com, 7 Dec. 2024

The sale of VCRs was restricted, but Cubans obtained machines through diplomats, sailors, and Cubans living abroad, especially in the U.S. Clandestine video libraries and salons cropped up to meet demands for content. —Laura-Zoë Humphreys and Daymar Valdés Frigola / Made By History, TIME, 6 Dec. 2024

Her exhibitions—both in this country and abroad–have brought Nigerian art to enthusiastic global audiences, making Omuku a rising star in the contemporary art world. —Okla Jones, Essence, 6 Dec. 2024

Although they might be tempted to turn inward and get their own economic houses in order, the causes of much of the dissatisfaction are to be found abroad, in a battered world economy. —Ned Temko, The Christian Science Monitor, 5 Dec. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English abrod, abrood, from a- a- entry 1 + brod, brood broad entry 1

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Kids Definition

abroad

adverb or adjective

ə-ˈbrȯd 

1

: over a wide area

2

: away from one's home

doesn't go abroad at night

3

: in or to foreign countries

travel abroad

4

formal : in wide circulation

rumors were abroad