interior

adjective in·te·ri·or \ in-ˈtir-ē-ər \

Definition of interior

1 :lying, occurring, or functioning within the limiting boundaries :inner

an interior point of a triangle

2 :belonging to mental or spiritual life

a simple interior piety

3 :belonging to the inner constitution or concealed nature of something

interior meaning of a poem

4 :lying away or remote from the border or shore

—

interiorly

play \in-ˈtir-ē-ər-lē\ adverb

See interior defined for English-language learners

See interior defined for kids

Examples of interior in a Sentence

a large car with lots of interior room
the novel's characters have plenty of adventures, but their interior lives are never explored

Recent Examples of interior from the Web

There is no room for other people in the world that Trump has made for himself, and this is fundamental to the anxiety of watching him impose his claustrophobic and airless interior world on our own.

— michelle weber, Longreads, "You Can’t Embarrass a Dog, or a Trump," 25 Aug. 2017
The assessment did not include work the building's interior might require.

— erin hegarty, Naperville Sun, "Owner fights landmark push for old Nichols Library; says 'property rights' being violated," 17 Aug. 2017
Roderick-Jones also is an interior designer, artist and photographer.

— lola sherman seaside musings, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Oceanside film festival to honor ‘Star Wars’ set designer," 10 Aug. 2017
John Derian New England is your interior design mecca.

— sarah solomon, Town & Country, "25 Reasons You Summer in Cape Cod," 27 July 2017
In another ordinance amendment, the city council moved to allow Pentwater residents to use golf carts on the interior roads in the subdivision.

— carrie napoleon, Post-Tribune, "Fines added to Crown Point animal control ordinance," 18 July 2017
With a storybook color scheme and patterns galore, interior designer Anthony Baratta transformed both the summer and the winter homes of this all-seasons Adirondacks compound into a vibrant, cozy refuge in the woods.

— douglas brenner, House Beautiful, "This Quirky Adirondacks Lake House Is the Opposite of "Roughing It"," 13 July 2017
Visitors can tour the homes and meet local builders, interior designers, and suppliers of the variety of home products featured.

— The Courier-Journal, "50+ fun things for week of July 13-19," 12 July 2017
Romualdez credits his five-years-older cousin, Imee Marcos, the eldest daughter of his aunt Imelda, for sparking his interest in interior decorating.

— bob colacello, vanityfair.com, "A Visit to Fisherman’s Cove, Designer Daniel Romualdez’s Montauk Escape," 10 July 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'interior.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of interior

Middle French & Latin; Middle French interiore, from Latin, comparative of Old Latin *interus inward, on the inside; akin to Latin inter

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 15th century

See Words from the same year

interior Synonyms

Synonyms

cerebral, inner, intellectual, mental, internal, psychological (also psychologic)

Antonyms

nonmental

Related Words

cognitive, conscious, epistemic, knowing; noetic; psychic (also psychical), telepathic; alert, brainy, bright, brilliant, clever, intelligent, quick-witted, rational, reasoning, sharp, sharp-witted, smart, thinking

Near Antonyms

bodily, carnal, corporal, corporeal, fleshly, physical, somatic; unconscious; brainless, dense, doltish, dopey (also dopy), fatuous, half-witted, mindless, obtuse, simple, slow-witted, stupid, thick, thickheaded, unintelligent, weak-minded, witless

interior

noun

Definition of interior

1 :the inner or spiritual nature :character

2 :the interior part (as of a country or island)

3 :the internal or inner part of a thing :inside

4 :the internal affairs of a state or nation

5 :a representation (as in a play or movie) of the interior of a building

See interior defined for English-language learners

Examples of interior in a Sentence

a black car with gray leather interior
the interior of the house
They traveled deep into the interior of Australia.

Recent Examples of interior from the Web

In the summer of 2010, Oxford University physicist Justin Wark flew to Northern California to study the interiors of stars.

— jonathon keats, Discover Magazine, "The Atomic Movie Machine," 14 Aug. 2017
In a meeting at the Pakistani senate in December, a former interior minister insisted that the culprits in Balochistan are Indian agents disguised in Pakistani uniform.

— The Economist, "Reconciliation is not impossible, but it will be a long, slow process," 22 July 2017
Visitors can tour the homes and meet the local builders, interior designers and suppliers of the variety of home products featured.

— The Courier-Journal, "Home and garden events July 22 and beyond," 19 July 2017
So one team of astronomers used data from the Gaia space observatory to simulate the interiors of solar-type stars, which are similar in mass and age to our own sun.

— andrew wagner, Science | AAAS, "Take a 360° spin through the heart of the sun," 13 July 2017
Add a band of muscles around the midsection of each individual that allows it to jet water to the interior of the tube for general propulsion.

— jennifer frazer, Scientific American Blog Network, "Alien Creature Swarming Oregon's Coast Is Actually a Close Relative [Video]," 10 July 2017
Romualdez is also currently working on two of the biggest projects of his career, designing the interiors for ultra-luxury condominium towers at 252 East 57th Street, near Sutton Place, and 70 Vestry Street, in Tribeca.

— bob colacello, vanityfair.com, "A Visit to Fisherman’s Cove, Designer Daniel Romualdez’s Montauk Escape," 10 July 2017
Last year, the space was leased by Grand Restaurant Group, which spent months modernizing the old building’s interior.

— pam kragen, Pacific San Diego Magazine, "Ponsaty’s unwraps secret dining room," 3 July 2017
The ERR was based on airborne contaminates and it is known the interior of the structures themselves also have contamination.

— carrie napoleon, Post-Tribune, "Superfund demolition brings more questions than answers," 27 June 2017

First Known Use of interior

1596

interior Synonyms

Synonyms

innards, inside, within

Antonyms

exterior, outside

Related Words

belly, bowels, guts; stuffing; recesses; center, core, heart

Near Antonyms

border, boundary, brim, brink, edge, end, extremity, fringe, limit, lip, margin, perimeter, periphery, rim; surface

INTERIOR Defined for English Language Learners

interior

adjective

Definition of interior for English Language Learners

: located on the inside of something
: suited for use in the inside or on inside surfaces
: occurring in the mind

interior

noun

Definition of interior for English Language Learners

: an inner part, area, or surface
: the part of a country that is far from the coast
: the events and activities of a country that involve the country itself rather than foreign countries

INTERIOR Defined for Kids

interior

adjective in·te·ri·or \ in-ˈtir-ē-ər \

Definition of interior for Students

1 :being or occurring inside something :inner

interior walls

2 :far from the border or shore :inland

interior

noun

Definition of interior for Students

1 :the inner part of something

the box's interior

2 :the inland part

the island's interior

Medical Dictionary

interior

adjective in·te·ri·or \ in-ˈtir-ē-ər \

medical Definition of interior

:lying, occurring, or functioning within limiting boundaries

interior

noun

medical Definition of interior

:the internal or inner part or cavity of a thing

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See words that rhyme with interior Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for interior Spanish Central: Translation of interior Nglish: Translation of interior for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of interior for Arabic speakers

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interior Synonyms

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interior

Definition of interior

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interior Synonyms

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INTERIOR Defined for English Language Learners

interior

Definition of interior for English Language Learners

interior

Definition of interior for English Language Learners

INTERIOR Defined for Kids

interior

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interior

Definition of interior for Students

Medical Dictionary

interior

medical Definition of interior

interior

medical Definition of interior

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