Elizabethan
Americanadjective
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of or relating to the reign of Elizabeth I, queen of England, or to her times.
Elizabethan diplomacy; Elizabethan music.
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noting or pertaining to an English Renaissance style of architecture of the reign of Elizabeth I characterized by fantastic sculptured or molded ornament of German or Flemish origin, symmetrical layouts, and an emphasis on domestic architecture.
noun
adjective
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of, characteristic of, or relating to England or its culture in the age of Elizabeth I or to the United Kingdom or its culture in the age of Elizabeth II
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of, relating to, or designating a style of architecture used in England during the reign of Elizabeth I, characterized by moulded and sculptured ornament based on German and Flemish models
noun
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of Elizabethan
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.
Traditional British architecture is characterized by the majesty of Elizabethan halls with their palatial glass, the elegance of Georgian townhouses and their sash windows or the charm of Tudor cottages with their trademark diamond casements.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 29, 2026
Christine Cover Ferro‘s costumes situate the jockeying courtiers in a vintage 20th century underworld. Projection designer Nick Santiago fleshes out Angela Balogh Calin‘s stripped down scenic design, which combines Elizabethan simplicity with modern rough edges.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 26, 2026
Prescot is believed to have been the site of the only purpose-built Elizabethan theatre outside London, which is thought to have existed in the 1590s.
From BBC ● May 30, 2025
As Elizabethan folk songs replaced Aldous' voice, Francis took a chrysanthemum and held it to Matthew's nose before scattering its petals across the sheepskin rug.
From Salon ● Apr. 19, 2025
There is no translation for this in classical Latin or Elizabethan English.
From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton
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.
