antediluvian

American  

[an-tee-di-loo-vee-uhn] / ˌæn ti dɪˈlu vi ən /

adjective

1. of or belonging to the period before the Biblical Flood.

2. very old, old-fashioned, or out of date; antiquated; primitive.

   antediluvian ideas.

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noun

1. a person who lived before the Biblical Flood.

2. a very old or old-fashioned person or thing.

antediluvian British  

/ ˌæntɪdɪˈluːvɪən, -daɪ- /

adjective

1. belonging to the ages before the biblical Flood (Genesis 7, 8)

2. old-fashioned or antiquated

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noun

1. an antediluvian person or thing

Etymology

Origin of antediluvian

First recorded in 1640–50; ante- + Latin dīluvi(um) “a flood, deluge” + -an; deluge

Example Sentences

Microsoft released the first version of Internet Explorer in 1995, the antediluvian era of web surfing dominated by the first widely popular browser, Netscape Navigator.

From Seattle Times • Jun. 14, 2022

The view that Avery worked for decades to achieve a final blast of brilliance seems as antediluvian as the idea that he worked alone in a style that overpowered his wife’s work.

From New York Times • May 12, 2022

So, $23.7 billion annually to renovate an antediluvian water system?

From Salon • Nov. 26, 2021

She rode past a parking lot containing an assortment of antediluvian cars and trucks, some so old they still had steering wheels, real ones, not the cosmetic kind.

From Slate • May 29, 2021

In some parts of the works there are impressions of antediluvian plants, of which we found some interesting specimens.

From Travels in the Interior of North America, Part I, (Being Chapters I-XV of the London Edition, 1843) Early Western Travels, 1748-1846, Volume XXII by Maximilian, Alexander Philipp