abroad

The word “abroad” means in or to a foreign country. In plain terms, outside your home country — or, in an older sense, "out and about" and widely known.

“Abroad” is pronounced uh-BRAWD (/əˈbɹɔːd/ in IPA).

Here is “abroad” used in a sentence: “They spent a year studying abroad in Spain.”

“Abroad” is an adverb.

The word “abroad” comes from Middle English. From Middle English abrood, combining a- ("on") with brood ("broad") — originally meaning simply "widely scattered.".

“Abroad” is a fairly common word in modern English, usually learned at around the A2 level.

“Abroad” has 2 distinct senses listed in this dictionary. The most common is: in or to a foreign country.

Both mean in or to a foreign country, and they overlap heavily. Overseas literally implies crossing a sea or ocean to reach the destination. Abroad is broader and carries no such requirement, so travelling from France to Germany by land still counts as going abroad but not necessarily overseas.

Abroad functions mainly as an adverb, describing where an action happens: "She studied abroad" or "They moved abroad." It is not used as a plain noun, so you say "living abroad" rather than "in the abroad." It answers the question where by meaning in a foreign country.

Common examples include "He works abroad for six months a year," "We are travelling abroad this summer," and "She sends money to family from abroad." In each, abroad simply means in or to a country other than one's own, without naming a specific place.

The opposite of abroad is at home or domestically, meaning within one's own country. Where abroad points outward to foreign lands, at home keeps the action inside national borders. You might contrast "holidays abroad" with "holidays at home" to make the distinction clear.