preposition
- on the inner side or part of; within: inside the circle; inside the envelope.
- prior to the elapse of; within: He promised to arrive inside an hour.
adverb
- in or into the inner part: Please go inside.
- indoors: They play inside on rainy days.
- within one’s heart, reason, etc.; by true nature; basically: I know inside that he’s not guilty. Inside, she’s really very shy.
- Slang. in prison.
noun
- the inner or internal part; interior: the inside of the house.
- the inner side or surface: the inside of the hand; He pinned the money to the inside of his jacket.
- Usually insides. Informal. the inner parts of the body, especially the stomach and intestines: The coffee scalded my insides.
- a select or inner circle of power, prestige, etc.: a man on the inside.
- the shortest of several parallel, curving tracks or lanes; the part of an oval track closest to the inner rail: The horse came up fast on the inside.
- the inward nature, mind, feelings, etc.
- Slang. confidential or secret information.
- an inside passenger or place in a coach, carriage, etc.
adjective
- situated or being on or in the inside; interior; internal: an inside seat.
- acting, employed, done, or originating within a building or place: He used to work on the dock but now he has an inside job.
- derived from the inner circle of those concerned in and having private knowledge of a situation: inside information.
- Baseball. (of a pitched ball) passing between home plate and the batter: The pitch was low and inside.
- inside of, Informal. within the space or period of: Our car broke down again inside of a mile.
- inside out,
- with the inner side reversed to face the outside.
- thoroughly; completely: She knew the work inside out.
noun (ˈɪnˈsaɪd)
- the interior; inner or enclosed part or surface
- the side of a path away from the road or adjacent to a wall
- (also plural) informal the internal organs of the body, esp the stomach and bowels
- inside of in a period of time less than; within
- inside out with the inside facing outwards
- know something inside out to know something thoroughly or perfectly
preposition (ˌɪnˈsaɪd)
- in or to the interior of; within or to within; on the inside of
adjective (ˈɪnˌsaɪd)
- on or of an interior; on the insidean inside door
- (prenominal) arranged or provided by someone within an organization or building, esp illicitlythe raid was an inside job; inside information
adverb (ˌɪnˈsaɪd)
- within or to within a thing or place; indoors
- by nature; fundamentallyinside, he’s a good chap
- slang in or into prison
late 14c., ynneside “interior of the body,” compound of in (adv.) + side (n.). The adjective is 1610s, from the noun. Inside job “robbery, espionage, etc., committed by or with the help of a resident or servant of a place” is attested by 1887, American English (also, late 19c., early 20c., “indoors work”). Inside track “advantage” is metaphoric because those lanes are shorter on a curved track. Inside of, in reference to time, is from 1839.
Within, in less than the whole of, referring especially to a period of time. For example, They promised to return it inside of a month. Although some authorities believe inside alone conveys the same meaning, the full term is widely used. [Early 1800s]
In addition to the idioms beginning with inside
- inside of
- inside out
- inside track, the
also see:
- on the inside
- step in (inside)