of or relating to the ancient world or to a former period of history.
of or relating to the Old World.
old-world customs.
characteristic of the Old World; quaint; traditional.
Europe, Asia, and Africa, especially when regarded collectively as the inhabited landmasses of the world known to Europe prior to its discovery of the Americas.
First recorded in 1705–15
First recorded in 1590–1600
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
It’s a hard twist to reconcile in a funky sport with old-world attributes, like the referee mysteriously keeping track of the remaining time like a secret cupcake in his pocket.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 3, 2026
Historic freezes in 1894 and 1895 nearly eradicated the industry, its first and last real brush with old-world calamity.
From Slate ● Apr. 20, 2026
As well as dressing up, they also try to replicate the posture, behaviours - such as using a fan - and "old-world way of speaking" of the Regency period.
From BBC ● Feb. 6, 2026
The kind that reeks of washed rinds, that crunches with tyrosine crystals, that bears the name of a tiny European village in delicate, old-world type.
From Salon ● Jul. 6, 2025
Comparing the clippers to those old-world wrecks was like squinting into daylight after coming out of a rust hold.
From "Ship Breaker" by Paolo Bacigalupi
While U.S. power and light providers steal headlines with data center superprojects and the proposed megamerger between NextEra Energy and Dominion Energy, Old World cousins are outperforming.
From Barron's ● May 27, 2026
Old World hantaviruses, typically found in Europe and Asia, generally affect the kidneys.
From Salon ● May 9, 2026
In Africa, Asia and Europe, they are referred to as Old World hantaviruses.
From MarketWatch ● May 4, 2026
But it is also the avatar of a decadent Old World barely capable of maintaining the artifacts of its past, let alone rekindling its genius.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 27, 2026
Much less data support the notion that Old World bacteria and viruses turned the New World into an abattoir.*
From "1491" by Charles C. Mann
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.
