out of town

See also: out-of-town

English

Alternative forms

• out-of-town (especially in attributive use)

Prepositional phrase

out of town

1. (of a person) Away from home; out of one's town of residence.

   They are out of town this week.

2. (of a person) From a different place.

   They look like they are from out of town.

   It's the kind of Manhattan place you take your relatives when they come from out of town.

   • 2012, “Out of Town Girl”, in Believe, performed by Justin Bieber:

     Oh, I ain't gotta ask I can tell you ain't from here-here-here-here / […] / If you know, you know I like that / Out of town girl, girl, girl, yeah, yeah, yeah

Usage notes

• The phrase out of town may be used whether or not the place in question would normally be considered a town, as in the reference to Manhattan in the usage example ("any more urbanized center than the place of reference").

• This phrase is much more common in American English than British English. Speakers of the latter usually use away or travelling for sense 1, while for sense 2, there is no equivalent set phrase.

Antonyms

• in town

Derived terms

• out-of-towner
• get out of town

Translations

out of one's town of residence

• Finnish: poissa kaupungista
• German: verreist (de)