outhouse

IPA/ˈaʊthaʊs/
KK[ˈaʊthˌaʊs]IPA/ˈaʊthaʊs/

outhouse — noun

  • outhousesingular
  • outhousesplural

1. a simple structure set beside a house or other main building, often used for sto

1.nounB2
Definition

a simple structure set beside a house or other main building, often used for storage or another practical purpose

Example

Lien stored paint cans in the brick outhouse beside her grandparents' farmhouse.

store things in an outhouse

After dinner, Jabari fixed the broken window on the old outhouse near the barn.

Common collocations
  • brick outhouse
  • wooden outhouse
  • old outhouse
  • outhouse behind the barn
Synonyms
  • outbuilding

    a broader and slightly more formal word for any separate small building near a main one

  • shed

    often used for storage; narrower because a shed is usually not used as a toilet

Grammar Patterns

an outhouse

in the outhouse

outhouse beside the house

Usage Note

This sense is about a small service building near the main structure. If the building is specifically used as an outside toilet, sense 2 is usually the better match.

2. an outdoor toilet kept in a separate little building away from the house

2.nounB2
Definition

an outdoor toilet kept in a separate little building away from the house

Example

During the camping trip, Imran walked to the outhouse with a torch.

go to the outhouse at night

The cabin had no indoor plumbing, so Lara used the outhouse behind the trees.

use the outhouse when there is no indoor plumbing

Common collocations
  • use the outhouse
  • clean the outhouse
  • outhouse behind the cabin
  • old wooden outhouse
Synonyms
  • privy

    an old-fashioned word for a simple outdoor toilet

  • latrine

    more common in camps, the military, or other basic shared settings

  • toilet

    the general modern word; it does not suggest a separate building outside

Grammar Patterns

use the outhouse

go to the outhouse

clean the outhouse

Usage Note

Usually refers to an old or basic toilet outside the house. In modern buildings, people normally just say toilet or bathroom for indoor facilities.

Common Mistakes

The hotel room had an outhouse next to the shower.
The hotel room had a toilet next to the shower.
An outhouse is outside the main building, not an indoor toilet.

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/2

For noun/2, outhouse usually means a toilet in a small building outside the main house. Privy is close in meaning, but it sounds older and is often used when talking about the past. Latrine is more common for camps, military sites, or emergency settings, especially when several people share the same basic toilet area. Toilet is the broad everyday word and does not tell you where the toilet is. Restroom is common in public places and sounds much more modern and polite. If a cabin in the woods has a separate toilet building, outhouse is the clearest choice. If a shopping mall has modern facilities inside, restroom or toilet is the natural word.

privylatrinetoilet ↗restroom ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

Phrases

  • old outhouse
  • wooden outhouse
  • behind the outhouse

Prepositions

Etymology

Old EnglishEnglish

This word was formed in English from out and house. It first meant a small building standing outside the main house, and that older idea later gave rise to the more specific meaning of a toilet kept in such a building.