outdated
Americanadjective
adjective
Etymology
Origin of outdated
Explanation
Anything that's so old-fashioned that it's unstylish or not useful is outdated. You might love the way an antique car looks, but its outdated safety standards (no seat belts or airbags) make it dangerous to drive on the highway. The 70s bell-bottom jeans your aunt still wears might be embarrassingly outdated, but at least they function as pants. Your outdated computer, on the other hand, isn't even capable of getting online or connecting to your printer — in other words, it's obsolete, or completely useless. This adjective dates from the early 1600s, from the "mark as old fashioned" meaning of the verb date.
Vocabulary lists containing outdated
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"Notable Southerners: Althea Gibson"
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Part 1 Vocabulary (Unit 5)
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The film may be set in the future, but Kore-eda’s ideas feel outdated.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 24, 2026
Novo Nordisk filed a lawsuit against Eli Lilly, accusing it of using outdated studies to mislead consumers about the comparative weight-loss effectiveness of its GLP-1 drugs Mounjaro and Zepbound against Novo Nordisk’s Ozempic and Wegovy.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 21, 2026
When professionalism is subjective, adopting what might seem like outdated norms is probably the smarter move.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 21, 2026
They have started inspections, leading to fines and closures of some premises that offer invasive procedures without proper permits or with outdated products.
From Barron's ● Jul. 17, 2026
She smiled, The people at seal camp had not been as outdated and old-fashioned as she had been led to believe.
From "Julie of the Wolves" by Jean Craighead George
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
