outset

An onset; the beginning or initial stage of something.

Noun

  1. An onset; the beginning or initial stage of something.
    • He agreed and understood from the outset, so don't bother explaining again.
    • At the first outset, heavy, miry ground and a matted, marish vegetation greatly delayed our progress; […] - 1881–1882, Robert Louis Stevenson, Treasure Island, London; Paris: Cassell & Company, published 14 November...
    • It was opened on July 1, 1903, and worked by the former Highland Railway from the outset. - 1954 January, “Notes and News: An Abandoned Railway from the Air”, in Railway Magazine, page 64:

Origin

From out- + set, replacing earlier outsetting.

Forms

outsets

Derived

at the outset the outset

Verb

  1. To cause (a design element) to extend around the outside of something else, the opposite of being inset.

Origin

From out- + set.

Forms

outsets outsetting outset