anachronistic
Americanadjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of anachronistic
First recorded in 1765–75; anachron(ism) + -istic
Explanation
Something that's old-fashioned and maybe a little out of place is anachronistic, like a clunky black rotary-dial telephone sitting on a desk beside a sleek new smart-phone (or whatever the new technology is when you read this). The adjective anachronistic comes from the Greek words ana, or "against", and khronos, or "time." It usually refers to something old-fashioned or antique, but it can also mean anything that blatantly clashes with the time in which it is seen. Imagine watching a movie that takes place in the 1700s and seeing one of the characters pull out a cell phone. Any phone, in the context of the movie's time period, would be anachronistic.
Vocabulary lists containing anachronistic
100 Top "SAT" Words
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300 Most Difficult "SAT" Words
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It's About Time: Chron and Temp
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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.
Anachronistic songs might soundtrack these events, but the trials, tribulations and creative curses that Birdy dreams up are all feudal England.
From Seattle Times • Sep. 22, 2022
Anachronistic references come up occasionally, but they’re well improvised and sometimes humorous.
From Washington Post • Aug. 10, 2016
Anachronistic and enchanting, the vision of these exotic beasts being herded through the concrete canyons never failed to produce a shiver of excitement in even the most jaded bystander.
From New York Times • Sep. 7, 2011
Anachronistic Armor The commander’s breastplate is Roman, the only kind of armor known to the fifth-century mosaic artists.
From National Geographic
See also Magic Anachronistic practices, II. 168Anâgâmin, I. 227Anâgata-vamsa, II. 22Anahit, II. 276Analecta, I. 177; III. 227Ananda, I. 133, 151, 153, 155, 156, 160, 162, 163 sq.,
From Hinduism and Buddhism, An Historical Sketch, Vol. 3 by Eliot, Charles, Sir
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.
