about

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English [edit]

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Alternative forms [edit]

  • (archaic) abowt; (abbreviation) a., (abbreviation) ab.,* (abbreviation) abt.

Pronunciation [edit]

  • (US) IPA: /əˈbaʊt/, X-SAMPA: /@"baUt/
  • Audio (US)
    		(file)
  • Audio (CAN, British Columbia)
    		(file)
  • Audio (CAN, Ontario)
    		(file)
  • Rhymes: -aʊt
  • Hyphenation: a‧bout

Etymology 1 [edit]

Preposition [edit]

about

  1. In a circle around; all round; on every side of; on the outside of. [First attested prior to 1150.][2]
    • c.1604-1605, William Shakespeare, All's Well That Ends Well
      So look about you; know you any here?
    • 1769, King James Bible, Oxford Standard text, Proverbs, iii, 3
      Let not mercy and truth forsake thee: bind them about thy neck; write them upon the table of thine heart:
  2. Near; not far from; regarding approximately time, size, quantity; on the point or verge of. [First attested prior to 1150.][2]
    The show is about to start.
    I am not about to admit to your crime.
    • 1769, King James Bible, Oxford Standard text, Acts of the Apostles, xviii, 14
      And when Paul was now about to open his mouth, Gallio said unto the Jews, If it were a matter of wrong or wicked lewdness, O ye Jews, reason would that I should bear with you:
    • 1866, A treatise on the law of suits by attachment in the United States, by Charles Daniel Drake, page 80
      [It] was held, that the latter requirement was fulfilled by an affidavit declaring that "the defendant was about leaving the State permanently."
    • 1769, King James Bible, Oxford Standard text, Exodus, ix, 18
      Behold, to morrow about this time I will cause it to rain a very grievous hail, such as hath not been in Egypt since the foundation thereof even until now.
    • c.1590-1591, William Shakespeare, The Two Gentlemen of Verona
      Therefore I know she is about my height.
    • 1769, King James Bible, Oxford Standard text, Matthew, xx, 3,
      And he went out about the third hour, and saw others standing idle in the marketplace
      (Note: This use passes into the adverbial sense.)
  3. On one's person; nearby the person. [First attested around (1150 to 1350.)][2]
    • 1837, Edward Bulwer-Lytton, Ernest Maltravers: Volume 1
      At this assurance the traveller rose, and approached Alice softly. He drew away her hands from her face, when she said gently, "Have you much money about you?"
      "Oh the mercenary baggage!" said the traveller to himself; and then replied aloud "Why, pretty one? Do you sell your kisses so high, then?"
  4. Over or upon different parts of; through or over in various directions; here and there in; to and fro in; throughout. [First attested around (1150 to 1350.)][2]
    • 1671, John Milton, Paradise Regained
      That heard the Adversary, who, roving still / About the world, at that assembly famed ...
    • 1849, Thomas Babington Macaulay, The history of England from the accession of James the Second
      He had been known, during several years, as a small poet; and some of the most savage lampoons which were handed about the coffeehouses were imputed to him.
  5. Concerned with; engaged in; intent on. [First attested around (1150 to 1350.)][2]
    • 1769, King James Bible, Oxford Standard text, Luke, ii, 49
      And he said unto them, How is it that ye sought me? wist ye not that I must be about my Father's business?
  6. Concerning; with regard to; on account of; on the subject of; to affect. [First attested around (1150 to 1350.)][2]
    He knew more about what was occurring than anyone.
  7. (figuratively) In or near, as in mental faculties or (literally) in possession of; in control of; at one's command; in one's makeup. [First attested around (1350 to 1470.)][2]
    He has his wits about him.
  8. In the immediate neighborhood of; in contiguity or proximity to; near, as to place. [First attested around (1350 to 1470.)][2]
Usage notes [edit]
  • (on the point or verge of): In modern English, always followed by an infinitive that begins with to. An archaic or obsolete form instead follows the about with the present participle.
  • (concerning): Used as a function word to indicate what is dealt with as the object of thought, feeling, or action.
Translations [edit]
around
in the immediate neighborhood of
over or upon different parts of
near
in concern with
on the point or verge of
concerning
The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Help:How to check translations.
Translations to be checked

Adverb [edit]

about (not comparable)

  1. On all sides; around. [First attested prior to 1150.][2]
  2. Here and there; around; in one place and another; up and down. [First attested prior to 1150.][2]
    • 1769 King James Bible, Oxford Standard text, 1 Timothy, v,13,
      And withal they learn to be idle, wandering about from house to house; and not only idle, but tattlers also and busybodies, speaking things which they ought not.
  3. In succession; one after another; in the course of events. [First attested prior to 1150.][2]
  4. Nearly; approximately; with close correspondence, in quality, manner, degree, quantity, or time; almost. [First attested prior to 1150.][2]
    about as cold; about as high
    • 1769 King James Bible, Oxford Standard text, Exodus, xxxii,28,
      And the children of Levi did according to the word of Moses: and there fell of the people that day about three thousand men.
  5. On the move; active; astir. [First attested around (1150 to 1350.)][2]
  6. Near; in the vicinity. [First attested around (1150 to 1350.)][2]
  7. To a reversed order; half round; facing in the opposite direction; from a contrary point of view. [First attested around (1150 to 1350.)][2]
    to face about; to turn one's self about.
  8. (obsolete) Preparing; planning. [Attested from around (1150 to 1350) until the late 18th century.][2]
  9. (archaic) In circuit; circularly; by a circuitous way; around the outside; in circumference. [First attested around (1350 to 1470.)][2]
    a mile about, and a third of a mile across.
    • 1886, Duncan Keith, A history of Scotland: civil and ecclesiastical from the earliest times to the death of David I, 1153, Volume 1,
      Nothing daunted, the fleet put to sea, and after sailing about the island for some time, a landing was effected in the west of Munster.
  10. (nautical) To the opposite tack. [First attested in the late 15th century.][2]
  11. (chiefly North America, colloquial) Going to; on the verge of; intending to. [First attested in the early 16th century.][2]
Derived terms [edit]
terms derived from about (adverb)
Translations [edit]
on all sides
in circuit
here and there
nearly
to a reserved position
The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Help:How to check translations.
Translations to be checked

Etymology 2 [edit]

From Middle English about (adverb).

Adjective [edit]

about (not comparable)

  1. Moving around; astir.
    out and about; up and about
    • 1898, J. Meade Falkner, Moonfleet,
      'John, I have observed that you are often out and about of nights, sometimes as late as half past seven or eight. ...'
  2. In existence; being in evidence; apparent;
    • 1975, IPC Building & Contract Journals Ltd, Highways & road construction, Volume 43,
      To my mind, transportation engineering is similar to flying in the 1930s — it has been about for some time but it has taken the present economic jolt to shake it out of its infancy, in the same way that the war started the development of flying to its current stage.
    • 2005, IDG Communications, Digit, Issues 89-94,
      Although it has been about for some time now, I like the typeface Sauna.
    • 2006, Great Britain Parliament: House of Lords Science and Technology Committee, Energy: Meeting With Malcolm Wicks MP,
      Is not this sudden interest in capturing CO2 — and it has been about for a little while — simply another hidey-hole for the government to creep into?
  3. Normally active and capable.
    After my bout with Guillan-Barre Syndrome, it took me 6 months to be up and about again.
Synonyms [edit]

Statistics [edit]

References [edit]

  1. ^ 1976 [1909], Gove, Philip Babcock editor, Webster's Third International Dictionary of the English Language Unabridged, Springfield, MA: G. & C. Merriam Co., ISBN 0-87779-101-5, page 5:
  2. ↑ 2.00 2.01 2.02 2.03 2.04 2.05 2.06 2.07 2.08 2.09 2.10 2.11 2.12 2.13 2.14 2.15 2.16 2.17 2.18 2.19 2003 [1933], Brown, Lesley editor, The Shorter Oxford English Dictionary, edition 5th, Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press, ISBN 978-0-19-860575-7, page 7:
  3. ^ 2007 [2002], Lindberg, Christine A. editor, The Oxford College Dictionary, edition 2nd, New York, NY: Spark Publishing., ISBN 978-1-4114-0500-4, page 4:

Anagrams [edit]

French [edit]

Noun [edit]

about m (plural abouts)

  1. (technical) The extremity of a metallic or wooden element or piece.

Anagrams [edit]

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