outgrowth

noun

out·​growth ˈau̇t-ˌgrōth 

1

: a process or product of growing out

an outgrowth of hair

2

: consequence, by-product

crime is often an outgrowth of poverty

Synonyms

• offshoot
• shoot
• sprout

Examples of outgrowth in a Sentence

trimmed back some of the tree's outgrowths so they wouldn't interfere with the power lines

a predictable outgrowth of the suburb's ever growing population will be the need for more schools

Recent Examples on the Web

Critics have sought to portray these groups and their efforts as an outgrowth of the push for diversity, equity and inclusion — or DEI, as it is often shortened — that has swept U.S. institutions in the last five years. —Sonja Sharp, Los Angeles Times, 18 Jan. 2025

The Panama Canal, truly an outgrowth of McKinley’s initiatives, is a different and more complex case. —David E. Sanger, New York Times, 23 Jan. 2025

The now-dominant faction in Syria, Hayat Tahrir al Sham, an outgrowth of al Qaeda, has pledged tolerance of all minorities. —Brady Knox, Washington Examiner - Political News and Conservative Analysis About Congress, the President, and the Federal Government, 11 Dec. 2024

If an individual went through a famine or a plague during their lifetime, lesions or outgrowths on the skeleton or the teeth would show this and indicate a person’s frailty. —Sara Novak, Discover Magazine, 10 Dec. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1837, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

outgrowth

noun

out·​growth ˈau̇t-ˌgrōth 

1

: something that grows out of or develops from something else

2

: offshoot sense 1, by-product

Medical Definition

outgrowth

noun

out·​growth ˈau̇t-ˌgrōth 

1

: the process of growing out

in vitro, dopamine modifies axonal and dendritic outgrowth

—Linda C. Mayes

2

: something that grows directly out of something else

an outgrowth of hair

a bony outgrowth