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Webster 1913 Edition

Ancient

An′cient

,
Adj.
[OE.
auncien
, F.
ancien
, LL.
antianus
, fr. L.
ante
before. See
Ante-
,
pref
.]
1.
Old; that happened or existed in former times, usually at a great distance of time; belonging to times long past; specifically applied to the times before the fall of the Roman empire; – opposed to
modern
;
as,
ancient
authors, literature, history;
ancient
days.
Witness those
ancient
empires of the earth.
Milton.
Gildas Albanius . . . much
ancienter
than his namesake surnamed the Wise.
Fuller.
2.
Old; that has been of long duration; of long standing; of great age;
as, an
ancient
forest; an
ancient
castle.
“Our ancient bickerings.”
Shak.
Remove not the
ancient
landmarks, which thy fathers have set.
Prov. xxii. 28.
An
ancient
man, strangely habited, asked for quarters.
Scott.
3.
Known for a long time, or from early times; – opposed to
recent
or
new
;
as, the
ancient
continent
.
A friend, perhaps, or an
ancient
acquaintance.
Barrow.
4.
Dignified, like an aged man; magisterial; venerable.
[Archaic]
He wrought but some few hours of the day, and then would he seem very grave and
ancient
.
Holland.
5.
Experienced; versed.
[Obs.]
Though [he] was the youngest brother, yet he was the most
ancient
in the business of the realm.
Berners.
6.
Former; sometime.
[Obs.]
They mourned their
ancient
leader lost.
Pope.
Ancient demesne
(Eng. Law)
,
a tenure by which all manors belonging to the crown, in the reign of William the Conqueror, were held. The numbers, names, etc., of these were all entered in a book called Domesday Book.
–
Ancient lights
(Law)
,
windows and other openings which have been enjoined without molestation for more than twenty years. In England, and in some of the United States, they acquire a prescriptive right.
Syn. – Old; primitive; pristine; antique; antiquated; old-fashioned; obsolete.
–
Ancient
,
Antiquated
,
Obsolete
,
Antique
,
Antic
,
Old
. – Ancient is opposed to modern, and has antiquity;
as, an
ancient
family,
ancient
landmarks,
ancient
institutions, systems of thought, etc.
Antiquated describes that which has gone out of use or fashion;
as,
antiquated
furniture,
antiquated
laws, rules, etc.
Obsolete is commonly used, instead of antiquated, in reference to language, customs, etc.;
as, an
obsolete
word or phrase, an
obsolete
expression
. Antique is applied, in present usage, either to that which has come down from the ancients;
as, an
antique
cameo, bust, etc.
; or to that which is made to imitate some ancient work of art;
as, an
antique
temple
. In the days of Shakespeare, antique was often used for ancient; as, “an antique song,” “an antique Roman;” and hence, from singularity often attached to what is ancient, it was used in the sense of grotesque; as, “an oak whose antique root peeps out; ” and hence came our present word antic, denoting grotesque or ridiculous. We usually apply both ancient and old to things subject to gradual decay. We say, an old man, an ancient record; but never, the old stars, an old river or mountain. In general, however, ancient is opposed to modern, and old to new, fresh, or recent. When we speak of a thing that existed formerly, which has ceased to exist, we commonly use ancient; as, ancient republics, ancient heroes; and not old republics, old heroes. But when the thing which began or existed in former times is still in existence, we use either ancient or old;
as,
ancient
statues or paintings, or
old
statues or paintings
; ancient authors, or old authors, meaning books.

An′cient

,
Noun.
1.
pl.
Those who lived in former ages, as opposed to the
moderns
.
2.
An aged man; a patriarch. Hence: A governor; a ruler; a person of influence.
The Lord will enter into judgment with the
ancients
of his people, and the princes thereof.
Isa. iii. 14.
3.
A senior; an elder; a predecessor.
[Obs.]
Junius and Andronicus . . . in Christianity . . . were his
ancients
.
Hooker.
4.
pl.
(Eng. Law)
One of the senior members of the Inns of Court or of Chancery.
Council of Ancients
(French Hist.)
,
one of the two assemblies composing the legislative bodies in 1795.
Brande.

An′cient

,
Noun.
[Corrupted from
ensign
.]
1.
An ensign or flag.
[Obs.]
More dishonorable ragged than an old-faced
ancient
.
Shakespeare
2.
The bearer of a flag; an ensign.
[Obs.]
This is Othello’s
ancient
, as I take it.
Shakespeare

Webster 1828 Edition

Ancient

AN'CIENT

,
Adj.
Usually pronounced most anomalously, ancient. The pronunciation of the first vowel ought to accord with that is antiquity, anger, anchor, &c. [Lt. ante, antiquus.] We usually apply ancient and old to things subject to gradual decay. We say, an old man, an ancient record; but never the old sun, old stars, an old river or mountain.
1.
Old; that happened or existed in former times, usually at a great distance of time; as, ancient authors, ancient days. Old, says Johnson, relates to the duration of the thing itself, as an old coat; and ancient to time in general, as an ancient dress. But this distinction is not always observed. We say, in old times, as well as ancient times; old customs, &c. In general, however, ancient is opposed to modern, and old to new, fresh or recent. When we speak of a thing that existed formerly, which as ceased to exist, we commonly use ancient, as ancient republics' ancient heroes, and not old republics, old heroes. But when the thing which began or existed in former times, is still in existence, we use either ancient or old; as, ancient statues or paintings, or old statues or paintings; ancient authors, or old authors, meaning books. But in these examples ancient seems the most correct, or best authorized. Some persons apply ancient to men advanced in years still living; but this use is not common in modern practice, though found in scripture.
With the ancient is wisdom. Job.
2.
Old; that has been of long duration; as, an ancient forest; an ancient city.
3.
Known from ancient times; as the ancient continent, opposed to the new continent.

AN'CIENT

,
Noun.
Generally used in the plural, ancients. Those who lived in former ages, opposed to moderns.
1.
In scripture, very old men. Also, governors, rulers, political and ecclesiastical.
The Lord will enter into judgment with the ancients of his people. Isa. 3. Jer. 19.
God is called the Ancient of days from his eternal existence. Dan. 7.
Hooker uses the word for seniors, 'They were his ancients,' but the use is not authorized.
2.
Ancient is also used for a flag or streamer, in a ship of war; and for an ensign or the bearer of a flag, as in Shakespeare. Cowel supposed the word, when used for a flag, to be a corruption of end-sheet, a flag at the stern. It is probably the Fr. enseigne.
Ancient demain, in English Law, is a tenure by which all manors belonging to the crown, in the reign of William the Conqueror, were held. The numbers, names &c. of these were all entered in a book called Domes-day Book.

Definition 2025

ancient

ancient

English

Alternative forms

Adjective

ancient ‎(comparative ancienter or more ancient, superlative ancientest or most ancient)

  1. Having lasted from a remote period; having been of long duration; of great age; very old.
    • 1963, Margery Allingham, “Foreword”, in The China Governess:
      ‘I understand that the district was considered a sort of sanctuary,’ the Chief was saying. ‘An Alsatia like the ancient one behind the Strand, or the Saffron Hill before the First World War. […]’
    an ancient city;  an ancient forest‎
  2. Existent or occurring in time long past, usually in remote ages; belonging to or associated with antiquity; old, as opposed to modern.
    • 2006, Edwin Black, chapter 2, in Internal Combustion:
      Buried within the Mediterranean littoral are some seventy to ninety million tons of slag from ancient smelting, about a third of it concentrated in Iberia. This ceaseless industrial fueling caused the deforestation of an estimated fifty to seventy million acres of woodlands.
    • 2013 July-August, Henry Petroski, “Geothermal Energy”, in American Scientist, volume 101, number 4:
      Energy has seldom been found where we need it when we want it. Ancient nomads, wishing to ward off the evening chill and enjoy a meal around a campfire, had to collect wood and then spend time and effort coaxing the heat of friction out from between sticks to kindle a flame. With more settled people, animals were harnessed to capstans or caged in treadmills to turn grist into meal.
    an ancient author;  an ancient empire‎
  3. (historical) Relating to antiquity as a primarily European historical period; the time before the Middle Ages.
  4. (obsolete) Experienced; versed.
    • Berners
      Though [he] was the youngest brother, yet he was the most ancient in the business of the realm.
  5. (obsolete) Former; sometime.
    • Alexander Pope
      They mourned their ancient leader lost.

Antonyms

Derived terms

Related terms

Translations

Noun

ancient ‎(plural ancients)

  1. A person who is very old.
  2. A person who lived in ancient times.
  3. (heraldry, archaic) A flag, banner, standard or ensign.
    • 1719, Daniel Defoe, Robinson Crusoe
      I got all things ready as he had directed, and waited the next morning with the boat washed clean, her ancient and pendants out, and everything to accommodate his guests..
  4. (Britain, law) One of the senior members of the Inns of Court or of Chancery.
  5. (obsolete) A senior; an elder; a predecessor.
    • Hooker
      Junius and Andronicus […] in Christianity […] were his ancients.

References

  • The Manual of Heraldry, Fifth Edition, by Anonymous, London, 1862, online at
  • ancient in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913
  • ancient in The Century Dictionary, The Century Co., New York, 1911
  • ancient at OneLook Dictionary Search

Statistics

Most common English words before 1923: reach · secret · showed · #672: ancient · parts · getting · stay

Anagrams

Etymology

From Middle English auncyen, from Old French ancien ‎(“old”), from Latin root *anteanus, from ante ‎(“before”). Compare antique.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈeɪn.(t)ʃənt/

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