in|te´ri|or|ly

in|te|ri|or «ihn TIHR ee uhr», noun, adjective.

–n.

1. the inner surface or part; inside: »

The interior of the house was beautifully decorated.

2. the part of a region or country away from the coast or border: »

There are deserts in the interior of Asia. To this tangled equatorial wilderness the young missionaries flew last week from an outpost in the interior (Newsweek).

3. the affairs within a country, regarded as separate from foreign affairs: »

The United States has a Department of the Interior to deal with patents, public lands, Indian affairs, and other matters.

4. a picture of the inside of a room, house, factory, ship, aircraft, automobile, or other enclosed area.

5. the inner nature or character of anything.

–adj.

1. on the inside; inner: »

The interior walls of the house are thinner than the heavy exterior walls.

2. away from the coast or border; inland: »

interior waterways that lead to the coast.

3. having to do with affairs within a country; domestic.

4. private; secret.

5. of or in the mind or soul; mental; spiritual.

╂[< Latin interior inner, comparative of inter within]

–in|te´ri|or|ly, adverb.