about

Etymology

Preposition and adverb from Middle English aboute, abouten, from Old English abūtan, onbūtan, from on (“in, on”) + būtan (“outside of”), from be (“by”) + ūtan (“outside”). Adjective from Middle English about (adverb).

prep

1. In a circle around; all round; on every side of; on the outside of.
   The snake was coiled about his ankle.
   Let not mercy and truth forsake thee: bind them about thy neck; write them upon the table of thine heart: 1769, King James Bible, Oxford Standard text, Proverbs, iii, 3
   The desert storm was riding in its strength; the travellers lay beneath the mastery of the fell simoom. […] Roaring, leaping, pouncing, the tempest raged about the wanderers, drowning and blotting out their forms with sandy spume. 1892, James Yoxall, chapter 5, in The Lonely Pyramid
2. Over or upon different parts of; through or over in various directions; here and there in; to and fro in; throughout.
   Rubbish was strewn about the place.
   The children were running about the room.
   He was well known about town.
3. Indicates that something will happen very soon; indicates a plan or intention to do something.
   1. (with 'to' and verb infinitive) See about to.
   2. (with present participle, obsolete or dialect) On the point or verge of.
      [It] was held, that the latter requirement was fulfilled by an affidavit declaring that "the defendant was about leaving the State permanently." 1866, Charles Daniel Drake, A treatise on the law of suits by attachment in the United States, page 80
4. Concerning; with regard to; on account of; on the subject of; to affect.
   He talked a lot about his childhood.
   We must do something about this problem.
   I already have made way / To some Philistian lords, with whom to treat / About thy ransom. 1671, John Milton, Samson Agonistes
   "I'll tell you what, Fanny: she must have her way about Sarah Thompson. You can see her to-morrow and tell her so." 1860, Anthony Trollope, Framley Parsonage
   I told him about everything I could think of; and what I couldn't think of he did. He asked about six questions during my yarn, but every question had a point to it. At the end he bowed and thanked me once more. As a thanker he was main-truck high; I never see anybody so polite. 1913, Joseph C. Lincoln, chapter 4, in Mr. Pratt's Patients
   Private-equity nabobs bristle at being dubbed mere financiers. Piling debt onto companies’ balance-sheets is only a small part of what leveraged buy-outs are about, they insist. Improving the workings of the businesses they take over is just as core to their calling, if not more so. Much of their pleading is public-relations bluster. 2013-06-22, “Engineers of a different kind”, in The Economist, volume 407, number 8841, page 70
   Well, let’s not talk about yesterday. Audio (US) (file) 2016, VOA Learning English (public domain)
5. Concerned with; engaged in; intent on.
   to be about one's business
   And he said unto them, How is it that ye sought me? wist ye not that I must be about my Father's business? 1769, King James Bible, Oxford Standard text, Luke, ii, 49
   RON: And I'll have the number 8. WAITER: That's a party platter, it serves 12 people. RON: I know what I'm about, son. 2013 March 14, Parks and Recreation, season 5, episode 16, Bailout
   (Chester) Have you much hay about? = Have you much in the process of making?
   (Chester) "What's Mary doin'?" "Oh ! oo's about th' butter." = "What's Mary doing?" "Oh, she's making the butter.
6. Within or in the immediate neighborhood of; in contiguity or proximity to; near, as to place.
   I can't find my reading glasses, but they must be somewhere about the house.
   John's in the garden, probably somewhere about the woodshed.
7. On one's person; nearby the person.
   I had no weapon about me but a stick.
8. (figurative) In or near, as in mental faculties or (literally) in the possession of; under the control of; at one's command; in one's makeup.
   He has his wits about him.
   There was an air of confidence about the woman.

adv

1. On all sides; around.
   I looked about at the scenery that surrounded me.
   Why, then, I see, ‘tis time to look about, / When every boy Alphonsus dares control. 1599, Robert Greene, The Comical History of Alphonsus King of Aragon, III-ii
2. Here and there; around; in one place and another; up and down.
   Bits of old machinery were lying about.
3. From one place or position to another in succession; indicating repeated movement or activity.
   walking about;  rushing about;  jumping about;  thrashing about
   1769, King James Bible, Oxford Standard text, 1 Timothy, v,13, And withal they learn to be idle, wandering about from house to house; and not only idle, but tattlers also and busybodies, speaking things which they ought not.
4. Indicating unproductive or unstructured activity.
   messing about;  fooling about;  loafing about
5. Nearly; approximately; with close correspondence in quality, manner, degree, quantity, or time; almost.
   It's about as cold as it was last winter.
   He owes me about three hundred dollars.
   Dinner's about ready.
   I was so scared, I about fainted.
   1769, King James Bible, Oxford Standard text, Matthew, xx, 3, And he went out about the third hour, and saw others standing idle in the marketplace
   Behold, to morrow about this time I will cause it to rain a very grievous hail, such as hath not been in Egypt since the foundation thereof even until now. 1769, King James Bible, Oxford Standard text, Exodus, ix, 18
   And the children of Levi did according to the word of Moses: and there fell of the people that day about three thousand men. 1769, King James Bible, Oxford Standard text, Exodus, xxxii,28
   I told him about everything I could think of; and what I couldn't think of he did. He asked about six questions during my yarn, but every question had a point to it. At the end he bowed and thanked me once more. As a thanker he was main-truck high; I never see anybody so polite. 1913, Joseph C. Lincoln, chapter 4, in Mr. Pratt's Patients
   [The researchers] noticed many of their pieces of [plastic marine] debris sported surface pits around two microns across. Such pits are about the size of a bacterial cell. Closer examination showed that some of these pits did, indeed, contain bacteria, […]. 2013-07-20, “Welcome to the plastisphere”, in The Economist, volume 408, number 8845
6. Near; in the vicinity.
7. To a reversed order; half round; facing in the opposite direction; from a contrary point of view.
   to face about;  to turn oneself about
   Mr. Carter, whose back had been turned, turned about and faced his niece. 1888, Horatio Alger, The Errand Boy
   1. (nautical) To the opposite tack: see go about.
      We went about and headed offshore.
8. (obsolete or rare) In succession; one after another; in the course of events.
   When he had finished, he drew his plaid around his head, and went slowly down to the little dell, where he used every day to offer up his morning and evening prayers, and where we have often sat together on Sabbath afternoons, reading verse about with our children in the Bible. 1818, James Hogg, published in The Scots Magazine, Vol. 86, p. 218, "On the Life and Writings of James Hogg" https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=W-5HAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA128&dq=%22reading+verse+about+with+our+children%22 [Quoted in the OED]
9. (archaic) In circuit; circularly; by a circuitous way; around the outside; in circumference.
   a mile about, and a third of a mile across
   Nothing daunted, the fleet put to sea, and after sailing about the island for some time, a landing was effected in the west of Munster. 1886, Duncan Keith, A history of Scotland: civil and ecclesiastical from the earliest times to the death of David I, 1153, volume 1

adj

1. Moving around; astir.
   out and about;  up and about
   After my bout with Guillan-Barre Syndrome, it took me 6 months to be up and about again.
2. In existence; being in evidence; apparent.
   This idea has been about for a while but has only recently become fashionable.
   To my mind, transportation engineering is similar to flying in the 1930s — it has been about for some time but it has taken the present economic jolt to shake it out of its infancy, in the same way that the war started the development of flying to its current stage. 1975, IPC Building & Contract Journals Ltd, Highways & road construction, volume 43
   Although it has been about for some time now, I like the typeface Sauna. 2005, IDG Communications, Digit, numbers 89-94
   2006, Great Britain Parliament: House of Lords Science and Technology Committee, Energy: Meeting With Malcolm Wicks MP, Is not this sudden interest in capturing CO₂ — and it has been about for a little while — simply another hidey-hole for the government to creep into?
3. Near; in the vicinity or neighbourhood.
   I had my keys just a minute ago, so they must be about somewhere.
   Watch out, there's a thief about.