outgrowth

noun

out·​growth ˈau̇t-ˌgrōth 

1

: a process or product of growing out

an outgrowth of hair

2

: consequence, by-product

crime is often an outgrowth of poverty

Synonyms

• offshoot
• shoot
• sprout

Examples of outgrowth in a Sentence

trimmed back some of the tree's outgrowths so they wouldn't interfere with the power lines

a predictable outgrowth of the suburb's ever growing population will be the need for more schools

Recent Examples on the Web

The anti-Assad group leading the assault, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, is an outgrowth of Al Qaeda, and is believed by the U.S. to still have significant ties. —Brady Knox, Washington Examiner - Political News and Conservative Analysis About Congress, the President, and the Federal Government, 7 Dec. 2024

The conflict began in 2011 as an outgrowth of the regional Arab Spring movement, with protests against the Assad regime that quickly mutated into an insurgency after the regime’s brutal crackdown. —Joshua Keating, Vox, 5 Dec. 2024

The rule, which the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives finalized in April, is an outgrowth of a 2022 federal law, known as the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, that made changes to the longstanding background-check system. —Jim Saunders, Sun Sentinel, 11 Sep. 2024

Yet for the most part, economists and financial analysts have treated these developments as outgrowths of the normal business cycle. —Mohamed A. El-Erian, Foreign Affairs, 22 Nov. 2022

Word History

First Known Use

1837, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

outgrowth

noun

out·​growth ˈau̇t-ˌgrōth 

1

: something that grows out of or develops from something else

2

: offshoot sense 1, by-product

Medical Definition

outgrowth

noun

out·​growth ˈau̇t-ˌgrōth 

1

: the process of growing out

in vitro, dopamine modifies axonal and dendritic outgrowth

—Linda C. Mayes

2

: something that grows directly out of something else

an outgrowth of hair

a bony outgrowth