SINCE 1828
inside
noun
in·side
| \ (ˌ)in-ˈsīd
, ˈin-ˌsīd
\
, ˈin-ˌsīd
\
Definition of inside
(Entry 1 of 4)
1a
: an interior or internal part or place : the part within
b
: inward nature, thoughts, or feeling
2
: an inner side or surface
3a
: a position of power, trust, or familiarity
only someone on the inside could have told
b
: confidential information
has the inside on what happened at the convention
4
: the area nearest a specified or implied point of reference: such as
a
: the side of home plate nearest the batter
b
: the middle portion of a playing area
c
: the area near or underneath the basket in basketball
inside
adverbDefinition of inside (Entry 2 of 4)
1
: on the inner side
2
: in or into the interior
stayed inside during the storm
3
: to or on the inside
4
: in prison
inside
adjectiveDefinition of inside (Entry 3 of 4)
1
: of, relating to, or being on or near the inside
an inside pitch
2a
: relating or known to a select group
inside information
inside
prepositionDefinition of inside (Entry 4 of 4)
1a
: in or into or as if in or into the interior of
waited inside the church
b
: on the inner side of
just inside the door
2
: within
inside an hour
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Synonyms & Antonyms for inside
Synonyms: Noun
Synonyms: Adjective
behind-the-scenes, confidential, esoteric, hush-hush, hushed, intimate, nonpublic, private, privy, secret
Antonyms: Noun
Antonyms: Adjective
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Examples of inside in a Sentence
Noun
The inside of the church is quite beautiful. I've never seen the inside of a computer before.Adverb
I cleaned my car inside and out. The candy is chewy inside. We went inside during the storm. Step inside and look at our menu. He got put inside for burglary.Adjective
the inside edge of her foot He gave us an inside view of the situation. I got the inside story from a friend who works there.Preposition
We waited inside the store. Several people were trapped inside the burning building. She kept her hands inside her pockets. His feelings were building up inside him. He lives inside the city limits. Sources inside the company indicate that there are disagreements about the change in management.
Recent Examples on the Web: Noun
Keeping lanes open would have extended the construction time to four or five months and doing so often ruins the inside and outside shoulders, which then need to be repaired later. — John Tuohy, Indianapolis Star, "More highway headaches: I-465 to close on south side," 10 July 2018 This combo forward can score from the inside and outside. — Times Staff Reports, latimes.com, "Ten international prospects not named Luka Doncic to know before the NBA draft," 12 June 2018 Despite being erected in the same era as the Sempra tower, City Hall appears more run-down from the inside and outside. — Jeff Mcdonald, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Seller proposed Ash Street tower as a new City Hall, and Faulconer aides never told the City Council," 28 May 2018 Now healthy after a knee injury derailed his 2017 season, Simms was a consistent presence for the Ducks throughout the spring on defense, getting work in with the inside and outside units. — Tyson Alger, OregonLive.com, "Oregon Ducks 2018 spring rewind: Linebackers," 16 May 2018 Radiators: If possible, remove radiator covers and clean inside and outside. — Joanne Kempinger Demski, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Spring cleaning: A spotless, well-organized home is your reward," 4 May 2018 Not to worry: Your clothes will still get plenty clean—most of the soil is on the inside anyway. — Brigitt Earley, Good Housekeeping, "A Laundry Expert's 8 Biggest Dos and Don'ts," 8 Feb. 2019 Perhaps Abramovich, not knowing about Schwab but knowing something about juju, looked around New York and decided to keep his nose in the air—but on the inside. — David Netto, Town & Country, "Is Roman Abramovich's Controversial New York City Mansion the Future of Manhattan Real Estate?," 30 Jan. 2019 Olivia Orozco singled to left field and scored on an inside-the-park home run to right field by Isabella Barerra. — Jeff Tully, latimes.com, "Burbank 8-10 All-Stars softball falls short of title," 4 July 2018Recent Examples on the Web: Adverb
Affordable, great for remodeling or new construction, inside and out. — Country Living, "WOODWORKERS SHOPPE," 5 Feb. 2019 It can be used inside or out, but its effectiveness is reduced when exposed to rain. — Joseph Truini, Popular Mechanics, "How to Get Rid of Termites," 8 Jan. 2019 Almost treehouse like in its aesthetics, the 2,391-square-foot four-bedroom boasts a series of decks, balconies, walkways, cantilevers, and staircases that creates a dynamic space both inside and out. — Megan Barber, Curbed, "The 11 best midcentury modern homes of 2018," 26 Dec. 2018 The walls of the demented ballet school that serves as the film’s nightmarish setting are blood red, both inside and out. — Aja Romano, Vox, "How Suspiria turns the color red into a plot point," 9 Nov. 2018 This is consistent with an important principle by which our democracy abides both inside and outside the courtroom: the presumption of innocence. — Fox News, "FOX NEWS FIRST: Key vote on Kavanaugh confirmation Friday morning; Multiple victims in Supreme smear campaign," 28 Sep. 2018 So did Jason Jones, the only reporter who covers the team inside and out – at home and away. — Jason Jones, sacbee, "Mistaken for other rising stars, can Zach Auguste make a name for himself with Kings?," 12 July 2018 After the crash, she was pinned inside and had to be removed by first responders. — Samantha Ketterer, Houston Chronicle, "Woman seriously injured in crash with stopped 18-wheeler in NW Harris County," 10 July 2018 Of course, it’s been upgraded with Logitech’s latest hardware: a HERO 16K sensor inside, with resolution from 100 to 16,000 dpi and 400+ ips (inches per second) across that range. — Mark Hachman, PCWorld, "Logitech brings back its MX518 gaming mouse with an updated version for 2019," 21 Feb. 2019Recent Examples on the Web: Adjective
For an inside look at all the action, watch Vogue’s exclusive video, above. — Steff Yotka, Vogue, "At Moncler Genius, a Puffa for All Types, Even a Dog," 23 Feb. 2019 In that situation, which would typically result in grotesque initial understeer, the Tesla somehow pivots around its inside tire and does a tight, not-especially-fast donut with a radius of one Model 3. — Ezra Dyer, Popular Mechanics, "Electric Slide: We Drove the Tesla Model 3 in the Snow to See How It Fares as a Rally Car," 21 Feb. 2019 The Navigation Team conducted checks on people who were found living without shelter and helped more than 50 travel to an inside location Saturday night. — Paige Cornwell, The Seattle Times, "Fresh snow arrives in Seattle, closing region’s schools again," 11 Feb. 2019 Eventually, someone will come along and restore a measure of decorum to politics, sparing voters the inside peek at their trips to the dentist or the fridge. — Karl Rove, WSJ, "The Weirdness of American Politics," 23 Jan. 2019 The engagement announcement isn't the first time Chris has given fans an inside glimpse of his relationship through social media. — Maggie Maloney, Town & Country, "Everything You Need to Know About Katherine Schwarzenegger's Engagement Ring From Chris Pratt," 14 Jan. 2019 That’s the advantage a congressional internship offers — an inside shot at getting a job in Washington. — Audrey Henson, Vox, "Diversity on Capitol Hill starts with paying interns," 26 Dec. 2018 The stones inside act as the seeds for the Olea europaea tree. — Caroline Picard, Good Housekeeping, "It Turns Out Olives Are Actually Fruits and Not Vegetables," 11 Dec. 2018 Every couple has their own inside jokes that not everyone understands. — Jennifer Aldrich, Country Living, "Jenny McCarthy Has a Strange Habit While Watching Donnie Wahlberg on 'Blue Bloods'," 19 Jan. 2019Recent Examples on the Web: Preposition
The Nature paper reports the results of 10 test flights inside an MIT athletic building. — Malcolm Ritter, The Seattle Times, "Experimental plane flies silently, may lead to quiet drones," 21 Nov. 2018 Started by one of WeWork’s early employees, the company says its mission is to create affordable housing stock by building modular prefab rooms that can be rapidly installed inside another building. — Liz Stinson, Curbed, "‘Co-living’ in an abandoned mall? This startup is making it happen," 20 Nov. 2018 After all, inside room after room of organized chaos looms the potential of encountering something extraordinary. — Christian Oth, Harper's BAZAAR, "17 Non-Traditional Gowns For the Renegade Bride," 1 Nov. 2018 And it was turned up once the three of you were inside that room, is that correct? — Alvin Chang, Vox, "Every time Ford and Kavanaugh answered the question — and didn't answer the question," 28 Sep. 2018 Plus, Stan's fellow Durmstrang wizard, Tolga, posted a selfie of the duo from inside The Wizarding World of Harry Potter. — Stacey Grant, Seventeen, "These "Harry Potter" Cast Reunions Will Make You Cry Tears Of Joy," 5 Oct. 2018 Sure enough, inside the drum was a thin layer of something dark and slimy: mold. — Jenny Marder, The Seattle Times, "There’s mold in your kids’ bath toys (and that’s probably OK)," 12 Feb. 2019 Well, perhaps peeking inside the White House to see how the most iconic residence in the United States is celebrating the winter festivities. — Carson Blackwelder, Country Living, "Your Guide to the Best Christmas Movies to Watch on TV This Holiday Season," 18 Nov. 2018 There are only a few slivers of metal in their design — inside the headband and as contrasting accents on the exterior — to break up the matte black monotony. — Vlad Savov, The Verge, "Audio-Technica M50xBT review: better beats," 12 Nov. 2018These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'inside.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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Learn More about inside
From the Editors at Merriam-Webster
The Inside Scoop on 'Inside Baseball'
The Inside Scoop on 'Inside Baseball'
Plus 'inside joke', 'inside job', and other 'inside' words
Dictionary Entries near inside
Statistics for inside
Last Updated
13 Mar 2019
Look-up Popularity
Time Traveler for inside
The first known use of inside was in the 14th century
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More Definitions for inside
inside
noun
English Language Learners Definition of inside
(Entry 1 of 4)
: an inner side, edge, or surface of something
: an inner part of something (such as a building or machine)
informal
: the inner parts (such as the heart and stomach) of a person's body
inside
adverbEnglish Language Learners Definition of inside (Entry 2 of 4)
: in the inner part of something
: in or into the inner part of a building, room, etc.
informal
: in prison
inside
adjectiveEnglish Language Learners Definition of inside (Entry 3 of 4)
: located on or near the inner side, edge, or surface of something
: coming from someone within a group or organization : relating to or having information that is known only to a special group of people
: done by someone within a group or organization
inside
prepositionEnglish Language Learners Definition of inside (Entry 4 of 4)
: in or into the inner part of (something or someone)
: within the borders or limits of (something)
: before the end of (a period of time)
See the full definition for inside in the English Language Learners Dictionary
inside
noun
in·side
| \ in-ˈsīd
, ˈin-ˌsīd\
, ˈin-ˌsīd\
Kids Definition of inside
(Entry 1 of 4)
1
: an inner side, surface, or space
the inside of a box
2
: the inner parts of a person or animal
—usually used in pl.
inside
adverbKids Definition of inside (Entry 2 of 4)
1
: on the inner side
I cleaned my car inside and out.
2
: in or into the interior
Go inside.
inside
adjectiveKids Definition of inside (Entry 3 of 4)
1
: relating to or being on or near the inside
an inside wall
2
: relating or known to a certain few people
inside information
inside
prepositionKids Definition of inside (Entry 4 of 4)
1
: to or on the inside of
They are inside the house.
2
: before the end of : within
I'll finish inside an hour.
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Comments on inside
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