Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun A detachment of troops stationed at a distance from a main force to guard against surprise attacks.
  • noun The station occupied by such troops.
  • noun A usually small military base established in another country.
  • noun An outlying settlement.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun A post or station outside of the limits of a camp, or at a distance from the main body of an army: often used figuratively.
  • noun The soldier or soldiers placed at such post or station.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun A post or station without the limits of a camp, or at a distance from the main body of an army, for observation of the enemy.
  • noun The troops placed at such a station.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun A military post stationed at a distance from the main body of troops.
  • noun The body of troops manning such a post.
  • noun An outlying settlement.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun a military post stationed at a distance from the main body of troops
  • noun a station in a remote or sparsely populated location
  • noun a settlement on the frontier of civilization

Etymologies

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

out + post

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Examples

  • Upon receipt of the _halt order_ from the commander of the main column, the outpost commander issues the _outpost order_ with the least practicable delay.

    Manual of Military Training Second, Revised Edition 1906

  • Finally, I would say that the outpost is a technical prerequisite for a Mars flight.

    Moon Outpost or Bust - NASA Watch 2009

  • Like many of my colleagues, I began my career at a local paper (Louisville in my case) covering local news: the police (we called our outpost at headquarters "the cop shop"), the board of aldermen, the zoning commission and, my favorite, the Metropolitan Sewer District.

    Howard Fineman: Parsing Our Partnership Howard Fineman 2011

  • A moon outpost is ISS 2.0 in every way imaginable, because the moon has no ISRU for life opportunities.

    Moon Outpost or Bust - NASA Watch 2009

  • Like many of my colleagues, I began my career at a local paper (Louisville in my case) covering local news: the police (we called our outpost at headquarters "the cop shop"), the board of aldermen, the zoning commission and, my favorite, the Metropolitan Sewer District.

    Howard Fineman: Parsing Our Partnership Howard Fineman 2011

  • An illegal outpost is dismantled, but its residents are relocated to an existing settlement that will require additional construction in order to house them.

    Wonk Room 2009

  • Now it may be that a lunar outpost is valuable in its own right but if as many people say its primary purpose is as a stepping stone to Mars, I need to hear the argument about why the quickest/cheapest path to Mars passes through the moon (figuratively of course!). common sense

    Moon Outpost or Bust - NASA Watch 2009

  • So each time a manned permanent outpost is established in Earth's orbit or on the Moon with a necessity for regular transportation of goods and passengers, a market is established by which companies have an identifiable source for revenue and profit.

    A Shift in Policy? Moon Base Axed? - NASA Watch 2009

  • I've never heard any really compelling justification as to why a lunar outpost is a more cost effective means of developing the technology needed to go to Mars.

    Moon Outpost or Bust - NASA Watch 2009

  • An illegal outpost is dismantled, but its residents are relocated to an existing settlement that will require additional construction in order to house them.

    Wonk Room » Bibi Still Playing Games On Settlements 2009

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