- en dehors de: outside of, apart from
- hors de: outside the reach of, out of (figuratively)
- au-dehors de: outside of, beyond the border of
- par-dehors de: surrounding the outside of
I'm trying to understand the differences in these prepositions when used in the sense of "outside."
Example:
There is an army outside the city.
- Il y a une armée en dehors de la ville. (outside the city)
- Il y a une armée au-dehors de la ville. (outside the border of the city)
- Il y a une armée hors de la ville. (outside the reach of the city)
- Il y a une armée par-dehors de la ville. (surrounding the outside of the city)
There is not much online explaining these differences. Does this sound right?