antebellum
[ an-tee-bel-uhm ]
/ ˈæn tiˈbɛl əm /
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adjective
before or existing before a war, especially the American Civil War; prewar: the antebellum plantations of Georgia.
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Origin of antebellum
First recorded in 1860–65, antebellum is from Latin ante bellum “before the war”
Words nearby antebellum
ant bear, antbird, ant cow, ante, anteater, antebellum, antecede, antecedence, antecedency, antecedent, antecedents
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021
How to use antebellum in a sentence
British Dictionary definitions for antebellum
antebellum
/ (ˌæntɪˈbɛləm) /
adjective
of or during the period before a war, esp the American Civil Warthe antebellum South
Word Origin for antebellum
Latin ante bellum, literally: before the war
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Cultural definitions for antebellum
antebellum
[ (an-tee-bel-uhm) ]
A descriptive term for objects and institutions, especially houses, that originated three or four decades before the Civil War. Antebellum is Latin for “before the war.”
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.