ab extra

American  

[ahb ek-strah, ab ek-struh] / ɑb ˈɛk strɑ, æb ˈɛk strə /

adverb

Latin.

1. from the outside.

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Example Sentences

"It seems to me," he said, "that there is a guiding and directing principle ab extra which interacts with the material of the physical universe but is not of it."

From Time Magazine Archive

The source of the sublime--as all along implied--is essentially ab extra.

From Lectures on Art by Allston, Washington

But some of his expressions are objectionable, as they seem to assume a material substratum, animated ab extra by an infusion of the Logos.

From Christian Mysticism by Inge, William Ralph

It is this character of life, I say, that so easily leads us to look upon it as something ab extra, or super-added to matter, and not an evolution from it.

From The Breath of Life by Burroughs, John

I doubted if he was the better judge for this—observing only ab extra, and without being in sympathy with her feelings as moved by the tale.

From Adela Cathcart, Volume 1 by MacDonald, George