I. ˈ ̷ ̷ˌ ̷ ̷ noun
Etymology: out (III) + post
1.
a. : a security detachment thrown out at some distance from a main body of troops at a halt, in bivouac, or in battle position, to protect it from observation or surprise by the enemy
b. : the post or station of such detachment
c. : a military base established by treaty or agreement in another country
an important United States military outpost in the Far East — Americana Annual
2.
a. : an outlying settlement
a last-chance outpost at the beginning of the swamp country — B.H.Scott
b. : the most advanced position or outermost limit of something : frontier
at the last outpost of the mind — Times Literary Supplement
the last outpost of our knowledge of the evolution of man as such — R.W.Murray
the highest outpost of the trees — G.R.Stewart
c. : an outlying branch or position of a main organization or group
four Eastern networks, each with an outpost on the West coast — Time
3. : an oil or gas well near the boundary of an adjoining oil or gas field
II. transitive verb
: to guard or place under observation by an outpost detachment
outpost the road
outpost the farmhouse