of or relating to the ancient world or to a former period of history.
of or relating to the Old World.
old-world customs.
characteristic of the Old World; quaint; traditional.
Europe, Asia, and Africa, especially when regarded collectively as the inhabited landmasses of the world known to Europe prior to its discovery of the Americas.
First recorded in 1705–15
First recorded in 1590–1600
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
It's the convergence of Old-World Italian tradition and American marketing and ingenuity, all contained in a can.
From Salon • Jul. 3, 2022
Gardolinska, who is Polish, brought slow, stern, Old-World pomp to the National Anthem.
From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 11, 2021
After nearly two years of preparation and three decades wringing some of the final great geographical feats from this planet, the veteran explorers were now headed out for a final Old-World expedition.
From National Geographic • Dec. 24, 2020
There was something in them reminiscent of the Old-World Belon oyster, or of the oysters once harvested from the Thames.
From Scientific American • Oct. 2, 2015
Velutha’s father, Vellya Paapen, however, was an Old-World Par- avan.
From "The God of Small Things" by Arundhati Roy
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.
