postmodern

[ pohst-mod-ern ]

/ poʊstˈmɒd ərn /

adjective

noting or pertaining to architecture of the late 20th century, appearing in the 1960s, that consciously uses complex forms, fantasy, and allusions to historic styles, in contrast to the austere forms and emphasis on utility of standard modern architecture.

extremely modern; cutting-edge: postmodern kids who grew up on MTV.

Words nearby postmodern

postmillenarianism, postmillennial, postmillennialism, postminimalism, postmistress, postmodern, postmodernism, postmortem, postmortem delivery, postmortem examination, postmortem livedo

Origin of postmodern

First recorded in 1945–50; post- + modern

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Examples from the Web for postmodern

The story of fluoridation reads like a postmodern fable, and the moral is clear: a scientific discovery might seem like a boon.
Anti-Fluoriders Are The OG Anti-Vaxxers|Michael Schulson|July 27, 2016|DAILY BEAST
It’s arguably the best film of the ‘90s—a postmodern pop culture smorgasbord awash in nihilism and dripping with retro cool.
The Secrets of ‘Pulp Fiction’: 20 Things You Didn’t Know About the Movie on Its 20th Anniversary|Marlow Stern|October 19, 2014|DAILY BEAST
We Americans, as the postmodern conservative professor Peter Lawler has put it, refuse to see ourselves as mere "history fodder."
Meet The Democrats’ Secret Savior Against Cuomo Corporatism|James Poulos|September 14, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Gabe tried to kick his postmodern, adolescent sense of ennui (a “lame” feeling) through members of the opposite sex (“dames”).
The Best Lyrics From Daniel Day-Lewis’s Son’s Rap Song|Amy Zimmerman|November 20, 2013|DAILY BEAST

We [Europeans] make a distinction between pre-modern, modern, and postmodern.
Sunday Q&A: Josef Joffe on the Myth of American Decline|Michael Moynihan|November 17, 2013|DAILY BEAST

British Dictionary definitions for postmodern

postmodern

/ (pəʊstˈmɒdən) /

adjective

(in the arts, architecture, etc) characteristic of a style and school of thought that rejects the dogma and practices of any form of modernism; in architecture, contrasting with international modernism and featuring elements from several periods, esp the Classical, often with ironic use of decoration

Derived forms of postmodern

postmodernism, nounpostmodernist, noun, adjective

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