medieval
Americanadjective
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of, pertaining to, characteristic of, or in the style of the Middle Ages.
medieval architecture.
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Informal. extremely old-fashioned; primitive.
adjective
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of, relating to, or in the style of the Middle Ages
-
informal old-fashioned; primitive
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“Medieval” is sometimes used as a term of disapproval for outdated ideas and customs. It may suggest inhuman practices, such as torture of prisoners. (See Inquisition.)
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of medieval
1820–30; < New Latin medi ( um ) aev ( um ) the middle age + -al 1. See medium, age
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How does medieval compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:
Explanation
Use the adjective medieval to describe something from the Middle Ages, or something so backwards that it might as well be from the Middle Ages. A teacher once rapped your knuckles with a ruler as punishment? That’s practically medieval! Medieval can also have positive connotations, since the Middle Ages are remembered as a time of knights and courtly love, when chivalry and honor were highly valued. If a guy doesn’t mind getting his feet wet lifting his girlfriend over a big puddle, that’s medieval in a nice way. However, if he then dies of the bubonic plague, that’s medieval in a less nice way.
Vocabulary lists containing medieval
"The Most Dangerous Game" by Richard Connell
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Fish in a Tree
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Medieval Europe - Introductory
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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.
Our study also reveals how the ridge of Oued Beht would become a focal point again in the medieval period, during the 11th to 13th centuries AD.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 31, 2026
The time period is vaguely medieval and the accents British, save for Skarsgård, who speaks in a flat, neutral exhale, the sound of breeze riffling through straw.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 22, 2026
A spokesperson for the company said: "While we appreciate the medieval spirit, safety must always come first."
From BBC ● Oct. 19, 2026
And at the French capital's Notre Dame Cathedral, an AI system has been trained to transcribe 14,600 Latin pages from the church's medieval archives -- a task not dissimilar to code-breaking.
From Barron's ● Oct. 16, 2026
And, just like the medieval experimentalists before him, Garzoni had almost no impact.
From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
