I. ˈinə(r) adjective
Etymology: Middle English inner, inre, from Old English innera, innra, compar. of inne in — more at inmost
1.
a. : situated farther in
an inner chamber
the inner bark
b. : near to a center especially of influence
the inner circles of the administration
c. : intramolecular — used especially of compounds
inner esters
2. : of or relating to the mind or spirit or its phenomena
the inner life of man
Synonyms:
inward , inside , interior , internal , intestine , intestinal are often interchangeable. inner may apply to something far within or near a center; consequently it may apply to something deeply intimate or inaccessible
an inner room
no wish to write anything but a spiritual biography, and outer events only interest me here insofar as they affected my inner life — Havelock Ellis
he had not chosen his course. It had sprung from a necessity of his nature, an inner logic that he scarcely questioned — Van Wyck Brooks
inward is close in suggestion to inner; it may apply to direction within
an inward curve
the little houses splashed in the thousands across the countryside sheltered the men turning inward in the quest for peace of mind — Oscar Handlin
that inward eye which is the bliss of solitude — William Wordsworth
inside , used often of space relationships, may suggest the restricted, secret, or confidential not shared by those outside
an inside room
inside work
speculating on inside information
even the bare outline was sufficient to gratify the public's craving for the abnormal and the spectacular. But the inside story of the catastrophe surpassed even the wildest flights of public fancy — W.H.Wright
interior may contrast with exterior and stress the fact of being within
interior decorating
not to be found in institutionalism, nor in the Scriptures, but in the interior life and spirit of man — W.R.Inge
frightened by an interior quietness and by the thought that she had for once in her life stopped thinking — Elizabeth Bowen
internal , contrasted with external, may apply to inner activity, force, development, or effect
interested more in internal affairs than foreign
the slavery which would be imposed upon her by her external enemies and her internal traitors — F.D.Roosevelt
a more general process of internal migration that involved both regional shifts and a drift to the cities — Oscar Handlin
intestine and, more rarely, intestinal are occasionally used as synonyms for civil and domestic, in contrast to foreign, to describe wars and disturbances
the common people fused, not without considerable intestine struggle, to form an Etrusco-Latin blend — R.A.Hall b.1911
II. noun
( -s )
: a forward line player in various team sports (as soccer and field hockey) stationed between the left or right wing and the center forward