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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His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

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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. 2023

How to use antebellum in a sentence

The scathingly satirical play presented three interracial couples who participate in a retreat that practices “antebellum sexual performance therapy.”
Tony Awards 2021: ‘Moulin Rouge’ wins best musical, and ‘The Inheritance’ snags best play|Peter Marks|September 27, 2021|Washington Post
Along the way, explore the remaining structures, including antebellum brick columns rising up from rubble piles.
The Most Adventurous Ghost Towns to Explore Across the U.S.|awise|September 24, 2021|Outside Online
But, of course, there was no national control over immigration in the antebellum period because the states would not allow it.
The myth of ‘open borders’|Anna Law|September 21, 2021|Washington Post
During the antebellum decades, as slavery’s apologists ratcheted up their claims that slaveholding was a constitutionally protected property right, abolitionists drew out the antislavery implications of the founding documents.
Working to end slavery, Lincoln found power — and limits — in the Constitution|Elizabeth R. Varon|January 22, 2021|Washington Post

Through the eyes of a character with uncommon access and compassion, Sadeqa Johnson’s novel “The Yellow Wife” evokes a vision of one woman’s tenacious survival of antebellum cruelty and objectification.
Sadeqa Johnson’s ‘Yellow Wife’ chronicles one tenacious enslaved woman’s survival in the antebellum South|Ellen Morton|January 12, 2021|Washington Post
I know Tom Woods is an intriguing writer, and I too love my liberty, but this is no longer the antebellum era.
Rand Paul and Nullification|Justin Green|January 17, 2013|DAILY BEAST
It showed how the old guard is trying to guide the Treasury secretary and protect the status quo antebellum as much as possible.
Geithner's Wild 100-Day Ride|Allan Dodds Frank|May 5, 2009|DAILY BEAST
That was in the antebellum days, before men realized they couldn't oppress their fellows with impunity.
The Open Question|Elizabeth Robins
Certainly Simms seems to have been the best imaginative writer the antebellum South produced.
American Men of Mind|Burton E. Stevenson
As the antebellum period of the fifties came on these questions loomed larger in the public view.
The Journal of Negro History, Volume 4, 1919|Various
Here the author shows that Astoria was included in the antebellum conditions of the Treaty of Ghent.
The Washington Historical Quarterly, Volume V, 1914|Various
The antebellum state-bank regulations were intended to secure the safety of the bank note.
Readings in Money and Banking|Chester Arthur Phillips

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.”

antebellum

Origin of antebellum

Words nearby antebellum

Words related to antebellum

How to use antebellum in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for antebellum

Word Origin for antebellum

Cultural definitions for antebellum