Origin and history of outdoors

c. 1500, "outer side, the exterior part or surface of a thing," from out- + side (n.). Meaning "the part or place that lies without or beyond an enclosure or barrier" is from 1610s. In isolated regions of the globe it tends to mean "the world of civilization and settlement" (1827

Old English open "not closed down, raised up" (of gates, eyelids, etc.), also "exposed, evident, well-known, public," often in a bad sense, "notorious, shameless;" from Proto-Germanic *upana-, literally "put or set up" (source also of Old Norse opinn, Swedish öppen, Danish aaben,

composition out has either its ordinary adverbial sense, as in outcast, outcome, outlook, etc., or a prepositional force, as in outdoors...

"India and adjacent regions and islands," 1550s, plural of Indie, Indy, from Middle English Ynde (early 13c.), the usual word in Middle English for "India," from the Old French form of Latin India (see India). Commonly applied to Asia and the East generally; later in a time of ge

late 14c., ynneside "interior part (of the body)," compound of in (prep.) + side (n.). General sense "inner side or part (of anything)" is from c. 1500. The adjective sense "being on the inside" is from 1610s, from the noun. It began to be used in slang c. 1900 in reference to th

in Spanish America, "unskilled worker," formerly in Mexico especially "a type of serf held in servitude by his creditor until his debts are worked off,"  1826, from Mexican Spanish peon "agricultural laborer" (especially a debtor held in servitude by his creditor), from Span

1630s, "American Indian bread," earlier appone, ponap (1610s), from Powhatan (Algonquian) apan "something baked," from apen "she bakes." Later used in Southern U.S. for any type of cornbread, "especially coarse kinds used by the negroes and poorer whites, commonly called corn-pon

Old English great "big, tall, thick, stout, massive; coarse," from West Germanic *grauta- "coarse, thick" (source also of Old Saxon grot, Old Frisian grat, Dutch groot, German groß "great"). If the original sense was "coarse," it is perhaps from PIE root *ghreu- "to rub, grind,"

expressing motion or direction from within or from a central point, also removal from proper place or position, Old English ut "out, without, outside," from Proto-Germanic *ūt- (Old Norse, Old Frisian, Old Saxon, Gothic ut, Middle Dutch uut, Dutch uit, Old High German uz, German

c. 1300, "invisible gases that surround the earth," from Old French air "atmosphere, breeze, weather" (12c.), from Latin aer "air, lower atmosphere, sky," from Greek aēr (genitive aeros) "mist, haze, clouds," later "atmosphere" (perhaps related to aenai "to blow, breathe"), which