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Synonyms

neoteric

American  
[nee-uh-ter-ik] / ˌni əˈtɛr ɪk /

adjective

  1. modern; new; recent.


noun

  1. a new or modern writer, thinker, etc.

neoteric British  
/ ˌniːəʊˈtɛrɪk /

adjective

  1. belonging to a new fashion or trend; modern

    a neoteric genre

"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

noun

  1. a new writer or philosopher

"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

Other Word Forms

  • neoterically adverb

Etymology

Origin of neoteric

1590–1600; < Late Latin neōtericus new, modern < Greek neōterikós young, youthful, equivalent to neṓter ( os ) younger (comparative of néos new ) + -ikos -ic

Explanation

Neoteric means modern or innovative. You might prefer eating at the familiar neighborhood pub instead of the sleek, neoteric restaurant that just opened downtown. Neoteric means brand new, original, or fresh, but the word itself dates back to the 16th century, from the Greek root neos, or "new." Your cousin's neoteric house, all glass and concrete, is a stark contrast to the cozy, worn bungalow your family lives in. You can also use this word for someone who's innovative or open to new ideas: "You'd never know it, but my grandfather is a neoteric, always the first to get the latest devices."

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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.

And as part of the collaboration, Burberry invited Ssense to add its neoteric polish to its SoHo retail space.

From New York Times • Nov. 23, 2021

Fiorucci opened his first retail venture in Milan in the mid-’60s, importing the British designers and looks that made London the worldwide capital of neoteric chic at the time.

From Architectural Digest • Jul. 31, 2015

Today he is editor of The Criterion, a neoteric quarterly of pronounced modernist tendencies.

From Time Magazine Archive

Occasion was taken by reporters to inform the plebs that the Baron has two Panamas, one senescent and one neoteric.

From Time Magazine Archive

Max Müller properly calls touch, scent, and taste the palaioteric, and sight and hearing the neoteric senses, the latter of which often require to be verified by the former.

From Sign Language Among North American Indians Compared With That Among Other Peoples And Deaf-Mutes First Annual Report of the Bureau of Ethnology to the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, 1879-1880, Government Printing Office, Washington, 1881, pages 263-552 by Mallery, Garrick