about
[ uh-bout ]
/ əˈbaʊt /
preposition
adverb
adjective
moving around; astir: He was up and about while the rest of us still slept.
in existence; current; prevalent: Chicken pox is about.
QUIZZES
HEED THE VOX POPULI, AND TAKE THIS WORD OF THE DAY QUIZ!
Test your memory on these verbal firecrackers from the week of June 29 to July 5!
Question 1 of 7
anchorite
Origin of about
before 900; Middle English aboute(n), Old English abūtan, onbūtan on the outside of (a- a-1 + būtan outside (see but1, but2), equivalent to b(e) by1 + ūtan), cognate with Gothic utana, Old Norse, Old Saxon ūtan, Old Frisian ūta, Old High German ūzan(a) outside; see out; cf. above, abaft for formation
Words nearby about
abought, aboukir, aboukir bay, aboulia, abound, about, about face, about ship, about time, about to, about turn
Dictionary.com UnabridgedBased on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020
British Dictionary definitions for about
about
/ (əˈbaʊt) /
preposition
adverb
adjective
(predicative) active; astir after sleepup and about
(predicative) in existence, current, or in circulationthere aren't many about nowadays
Word Origin for about
Old English abūtan, onbūtan on the outside of, around, from on + būtan outside
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Idioms and Phrases with about
about
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.