ago
Americanadjective
adverb
adverb
Usage
What does ago mean? Ago means in the past. It’s always used in combination with other words that indicate exactly or about how much time has passed since something happened—never by itself (you wouldn’t say That happened ago). Examples of such phrases are three weeks ago, an hour ago, five days ago, long ago, and a long time ago. Example: A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away ….
Etymology
Origin of ago
before 1000; Middle English ago ( n ), Old English āgān, past participle of āgān to go by, pass, equivalent to ā- a- 3 + gān to go 1
Explanation
Use ago to mean "earlier" or "in the past." Dinosaurs lived a long time ago. The adverb ago refers to a time before the present moment, sometimes in the distant past, and sometimes more recently: "She just left for her appointment ten minutes ago." When you talk about the more remote past, you might say "long ago" or "a long time ago." Ago was originally a shortened form of agone in Middle English, "departed or passed away."
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.
Three years ago, an Arctic owl captivated residents in Cypress after arriving around the Christmas holiday in 2022 before it left the next month.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 27, 2026
He said he had lived in the house continuously since it was built 17 years ago until he was told by police that he had to move out in May.
From BBC ● Aug. 27, 2026
An estimated 7.4 million Americans age 65 and older—or about 1 in 9—are living with Alzheimer’s dementia, up from 5.4 million a decade ago, according to the Alzheimer’s Association’s latest report.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 27, 2026
The possibility that Betelgeuse has a companion was first raised roughly a century ago as a potential explanation for some of its changes in brightness.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 27, 2026
Twenty-three hundred years ago, the ancient Greeks "knew" that the heart was the center of emotion and thought.
From "Phineas Gage" by John Fleischman
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.
