outside

at the (very) outside

at the very most. The car repairs will cost $300 at the very outside. I'm now on my way and I'll be there in three hours at the outside.

fall outside something

to be beyond someone's power, responsibility, or jurisdiction. This matter falls outside my bailiwick. Her offense fell outside of the manager's jurisdiction.

See also: fall

outside of something

except for something; besides something. Outside of the cost of my laundry, I have practically no expenses. Outside of some new shoes, I don't need any new clothing.

stand outside (of) (something)

to remain outside of a place, standing. (Of is usually retained before pronouns.) Judy stood outside the shop, waiting for it to open. How long have you been standing outside the door in this cold wind?

See also: stand

step outside 

1. to go outside, as if to get some fresh air. I need to step outside for a minute to get a breath of air. Tom and Harry stepped outside for a moment.

2. to go outside to fight or settle an argument. I find that insulting. Would you care to step outside? Max invited Lefty to step outside.

See also: step

think outside the box

Fig. to think freely, not bound by old, nonfunctional, or limiting structures, rules, or practices. (As if thinking or creativity were confined in or limited by a figurative box. Compare this with think inside the box.) You won't come up with good ideas until you think outside the box. Let's think outside the box for a minute and try to find a better solution.

See also: box, think

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think outside the box

to think imaginatively using new ideas instead of traditional or expected ideas We try to encourage our researchers to think outside the box.

See also: box, think

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at the outside

no more than We'll be ten minutes late at the outside.

Usage notes: used to emphasize that the actual amount of time will be less than what was mentioned

outside of somebody/something

not including someone or something I don't have any work experience, outside of a few summer jobs. Outside of my two cousins in California, I don't have many relatives.

think outside the box also think out of the box

to develop ideas that are different and unusual We need to think outside the box if we are going to come up with something really new. These guys are incredibly creative - they really know how to think out of the box.

Usage notes: sometimes used with verbs other than think: You need to look outside the box and see what you can come up with.

Etymology: based on the idea that limiting your thoughts is like thinking inside a box which can contain only a certain number of ideas

See also: box, think