extrovert

English

Alternative forms

• extravert

Etymology

Alteration of earlier extravert (by influence of introvert), from German Extravert, popularized in psychology by Phyllis Blanchard's 1918 "Psycho-Analytic Study of August Comte". By surface analysis, extro- +‎ -vert.

Pronunciation

Noun/Adjective

• (UK) IPA^(key): /ˈɛkstɹəvəːt/
• (US) IPA^(key): /ˈɛkstɹəˌvəɹt/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

Verb

• (UK) IPA^(key): /ɛkstɹəʊˈvəːt/
• (US) IPA^(key): /ɛkstɹoʊˈvəɹt/
• Rhymes: -ɜː(ɹ)t

Noun

extrovert (plural extroverts)

1. (informal psychology) An extroverted person: one who is outgoing, sociable, and concerned with outer affairs.
   • 1918 April, Phyllis Blanchard, “A Psycho-Analytic Study of August Comte”, in American Journal of Psychology, page 163:

     In order to understand the marked contract between Comte's mental attitude during his early years and that of his later life, we must keep in mind Jung's hypothesis of the two psychological types, the introvert and extrovert,—the thinking type and the feeling type.

   • 1981, William Irwin Thompson, The Time Falling Bodies Take to Light: Mythology, Sexuality and the Origins of Culture, London: Rider/Hutchinson & Co., page 201:

     He cannot find the fabled boatman, but he does come across the two stone images that belong to the boatman, and in rage and frustration, the great heroic extrovert, the man who is used to acting out whatever he feels inside, smashes the stones.

   • 2016 November 1, Drake Baer, “Are you an introvert or an extrovert? It’s more complicated than that”, in CNN‎^[1]:

     To see your identity in any single trait – introvert, extrovert, or neurotic – is to limit your life.

   • 2020 March 23, Ryan Prior, “The extrovert’s guide to social distancing”, in CNN‎^[2]:

     If you’re an extrovert and the thought of weeks or months of social distancing has you jumping out of your skin, rest assured. Your feelings are normal. And we’re here to help. […] And while her introverted clients may be feeling less stressed, and sometimes even emboldened by social distancing, Blandino said both extroverts and introverts can leverage technology to weather the storm.

   • 2025 August 20, “Are you an otrovert? Why this personality type could be your greatest gift”, in The Guardian‎^[3]:

     So if introverts look inwards, and extroverts outwards, where the hell do otroverts look? Neither of the above.

Usage notes

Technical papers in psychology overwhelmingly prefer extravert, the variant used by Carl Jung, although the spelling extrovert is more common in general use.

Antonyms

• introvert

Derived terms

• extraverted
• extrovertish
• extrovertist
• extrovertness

Related terms

• ambivert
• extroverted
• extroversion
• otrovert

Translations

one who is outgoing, sociable

• Catalan: extravertit (ca)
• Chinese:

  Chinese: 外向的人 (wàixiàng de rén)

• Czech: extrovert m
• Finnish: ulospäinsuuntautunut henkilö, ekstrovertti (fi)
• French: extraverti (fr), extroverti (fr)
• Georgian: ექსტრავერტი (eksṭraverṭi)
• Irish: eisdíritheach m
• Italian: estroverso (it)
• Japanese: 外向的な人 (gaikōtekinahito)
• Persian: برون‌گرا (borun-gerâ)
• Portuguese: extrovertido (pt)
• Punjabi: ਬਾਹਰਮੁਖੀ (bāhramukhī)
• Russian: экстраве́рт (ru) m (ekstravért)
• Spanish: extravertido (es), extrovertido (es)
• Tagalog: luwaswili

Adjective

extrovert (comparative more extrovert, superlative most extrovert)

1. (informal psychology) Alternative form of extroverted: outgoing.

Verb

extrovert (third-person singular simple present extroverts, present participle extroverting, simple past and past participle extroverted)

1. (transitive) To turn or thrust outwards.
   • 1671, John Webster, Metallographia, page 197:

     The external and combustible Sulphur... is... protruded and extroverted.

References

• “extrovert, v.”, in OED Online ⁠, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1894.
• “extrovert, n. (and adj.).”, in OED Online ⁠, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1933.
• Scott Barry Kaufman, "The Difference between ExtrAversion and ExtrOversion", Beautiful Minds, Scientific American, Springer Nature America, 2015.

Czech

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈɛkstrovɛrt]

Noun

extrovert m anim (female equivalent extrovertka)

1. (psychology) extrovert

   Antonym: introvert m

Declension

Declension of extrovert (hard masculine animate)

	singular	plural
nominative	extrovert	extroverti
genitive	extroverta	extrovertů
dative	extrovertovi, extrovertu	extrovertům
accusative	extroverta	extroverty
vocative	extroverte	extroverti
locative	extrovertovi, extrovertu	extrovertech
instrumental	extrovertem	extroverty

Derived terms

• extrovertní

Related terms

• See verš

• extroverze f

Swedish

Adjective

extrovert (not comparable)

1. extroverted

   Antonym: introvert

Declension

Inflection of extrovert

Indefinite	positive	comparative	superlative1
common singular	extrovert	—	—
neuter singular	extrovert	—	—
plural	extroverta	—	—
masculine plural2	extroverte	—	—
Definite	positive	comparative	superlative
masculine singular3	extroverte	—	—
all	extroverta	—	—

¹ The indefinite superlative forms are only used in the predicative.
² Dated or archaic.
³ Only used, optionally, to refer to things whose natural gender is masculine.

See also

• utåtriktad

References

• “extrovert”, in Svensk ordbok [Dictionary of Swedish] (in Swedish)
• “extrovert”, in Svenska Akademiens ordlista [Wordlist of the Swedish Academy] (in Swedish)