chronological
Americanadjective
-
arranged in the order of time.
a chronological list of events.
-
pertaining to or in accordance with chronology.
a chronological process.
adjective
-
(esp of a sequence of events) arranged in order of occurrence
-
relating to or in accordance with chronology
Other Word Forms
- chronologically adverb
- unchronological adjective
Etymology
Origin of chronological
First recorded in 1605–15; chronolog(y) + -ical
Explanation
If you’re making a list of all your teachers in the order you had them, from kindergarten right up to the present, you’re listing them in chronological order. Chronological is the order in which things actually happened. Chronological doesn’t allow for time traveling or flashbacks. If you’re making a documentary of events leading up to World War II and you start in the early 1900s and end at the outbreak of the war, in 1939, that’s chronological. Reverse chronological order means giving the most recent event first, and going backwards from there. Chronological includes the useful Greek root khronos, "time."
Vocabulary lists containing chronological
It's About Time: Chron and Temp
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Ides, Eon, Epoch, and Era: Time-related Words
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List 6
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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.
That other Greek concept is chronos, which refers to chronological or sequential time and is quantitative.
From Salon • Mar. 27, 2026
The production took place in two-episode blocks and was primarily chronological, with directors David Gordon Green and Charlotte Brändström at the helm.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 11, 2026
The film takes a roughly chronological approach to her career, but the aesthetic is that of a dynamic collagist, piecing together films, interviews and audio recordings into a portrait of real depth and style.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 10, 2026
Reddit is organised into user-created communities called subreddits, where content is ranked by user voting rather than chronological order.
From BBC • Feb. 16, 2026
Everything is clearly labeled by place and date with a black Sharpie and neatly stacked in chronological sequence under the eaves.
From "Orphan Train" by Christina Baker Kline
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.
