inner space

noun

1
: space at or near the earth's surface and especially under the sea
2
: one's inner self

Examples of inner space in a Sentence

an intensely private individual, he treats his inner space as sacred ground that is off-limits to other people
Recent Examples on the Web The group’s meditative soundscapes, a series of exploratory journeys into inner space, showcase Ms. Aftab’s plaintive vocals in Urdu. Stephen Humphries, The Christian Science Monitor, 30 Mar. 2023 The Quantum Realm turns out to be nothing more than inner space, the very small counterpart of a galaxy far, far away. Richard Brody, The New Yorker, 15 Feb. 2023 Through snowy stargazing, flirting with guys on dating apps, taking ketamine (or not), and watching YouTube lecture videos, outer and inner space collapse – to draw a warped cartography of desire and distance. Peter Debruge, Variety, 13 Dec. 2022 Gravity rules outer space, shaping galaxies and indeed the whole universe, whereas quantum mechanics rules inner space, the arena of atoms and elementary particles. Dennis Overbye, New York Times, 10 Oct. 2022 Here's his vision to protect inner space from orbital debris. Katie Hunt, CNN, 10 Sep. 2022 Another dimension emerges from the accounts of people who have survived extreme situations, whether at sea or in the mountains or even under imprisonment and torture—namely, an astonishing ability to use the imagination and an inner space. Luc-Christophe Guillerm, Scientific American, 16 Apr. 2021 The task force also fostered a parallel movement for the Navy to release once-secret information that illuminated inner space — the ocean's sunless depths. Star Tribune, 8 Jan. 2021 To those of us living with stress and frustration during COVID-19 restrictions, these artists demonstrate how to develop an inner space of freedom – and how to live imaginatively and purposefully in a strange new world. Janie Paul, The Conversation, 9 June 2020

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'inner space.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1958, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of inner space was in 1958

Dictionary Entries Near inner space

Cite this Entry

“Inner space.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/inner%20space. Accessed 16 Apr. 2024.

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!