antique
Americanadjective
-
of or belonging to the past; not modern.
-
dating from a period long ago.
antique furniture.
- Synonyms:
- obsolescent, obsolete, old
-
noting or pertaining to automobiles approximately 25 years old or more.
-
in the tradition, fashion, or style of an earlier period; old-fashioned; antiquated.
-
of or belonging to the ancient Greeks and Romans.
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(of paper) neither calendered nor coated and having a rough surface.
noun
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any work of art, piece of furniture, decorative object, or the like, created or produced in a former period, or, according to U.S. customs laws, 100 years before date of purchase.
-
the antique style, usually Greek or Roman, especially in art.
-
Printing. a style of type.
verb (used with object)
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to make or finish (something, especially furniture) in imitation of antiques.
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to emboss (an image, design, letters, or the like) on paper or fabric.
verb (used without object)
noun
-
-
a decorative object, piece of furniture, or other work of art created in an earlier period, that is collected and valued for its beauty, workmanship, and age
-
( as modifier )
an antique shop
-
-
any object made in an earlier period
-
the style of ancient art, esp Greek or Roman art, or an example of it
adjective
-
made in or in the style of an earlier period
-
of or belonging to the distant past, esp of or in the style of ancient Greece or Rome
-
informal old-fashioned; out-of-date
-
archaic aged or venerable
-
(of paper) not calendered or coated; having a rough surface
verb
Synonym Usage
See ancient 1.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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antiquenessnoun
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subantiquenessnoun
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pseudoantiqueadjective
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quasi-antiqueadjective
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subantiqueadjective
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antiquelyadverb
-
subantiquelyadverb
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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antiquesimple
-
antiquessimple
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have antiquedperfect
-
has antiquedperfect
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am antiquingprogressive
-
are antiquingprogressive
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is antiquingprogressive
-
have been antiquingperfect progressive
-
has been antiquingperfect progressive
Past
-
antiquedsimple
-
had antiquedperfect
-
was antiquingprogressive
-
were antiquingprogressive
-
had been antiquingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of antique
1520–30; earlier also anticke (< Middle French antique ) < Latin antīiquus, antīicus in front, existing earler, ancient; cf. antic, posticum
Explanation
An antique is an old-fashioned thing, like a lamp from the sixties. Anything antique is old or at least old-ish. When you see the word antique, you know you're not going to hear about anything new or young. An antique is a nice, old piece of furniture, that's usually been well taken care of and costs more than something new. Shopping for antiques is called antiquing. Outside of antique shops, calling anything antique means it's out-of-date and useless — so if you wanted to be mean, you could call your grandparents antiques.
Vocabulary lists containing antique
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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.
See Examples For:
So Monique actually designed a custom color, and it’s this antique kind of tea-stained color that is so beautiful.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 27, 2026
Sprawling across 7,190 square feet, the lavish abode also boasts a saltwater pool, a tennis court, a greenhouse, an antique barn, a treehouse, and other features.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 22, 2026
Pat Cunningham, who worked at the castle between 1988 and 2010, bought the cards online or from local antique shops over decades, according to English Heritage.
From BBC ● Jul. 10, 2026
The seller, from Western Colorado, was happy to oblige my “provenance” question, as if I were inquiring about an antique Cartier watch.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 4, 2026
She was tall, and perched with difficulty on one of the delicate antique side chairs in the front parlor of Ashton Place.
From "The Long-Lost Home" by Maryrose Wood
But by the 1960s, it was much diminished, and a later owner, Benjamin Swig, had sold close to 1,000 antiques and artworks to help pay bills.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 11, 2026
“I don’t think she meant to do it, but she did,” said Annette Davis Bradley, owner of Downtown Envy, an antiques store a short walk from the Colleton County Courthouse where Hill presided.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 24, 2026
The court heard the accompanying paperwork had been typed using a typewriter on paper embossed with an antiques dealers' logo – and even a nine-pence stamp.
From BBC ● May 22, 2026
‘Storage Wars’ star Darrell Sheets, an antiques enthusiast known by fans of the A&E series as ‘The Gambler,’ was found dead on Wednesday.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 27, 2026
Chacko lived in Canada now, and ran an unsuccessful antiques business.
From "The God of Small Things" by Arundhati Roy
Of course, the only caveat is watching the slick show in the antiqued DVD format.
From Washington Times ● Dec. 1, 2021
It hangs from an antiqued sterling silver chain, complemented with Heishi beads and polished stones.
From Seattle Times ● Nov. 16, 2021
Do you think it’s OK to have a low-key party to celebrate our child, or is this an antiqued ordeal that needs to go?
From Slate ● Jan. 31, 2021
Designed by Stephen Rieman and Mark Krasne, the condo features antiqued mirrors, hand-stenciled doors and a wet bar.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 20, 2019
With glasses, and an unbelted Mother Hubbard gown made out of antiqued gold cloth, she might have passed for a habitué of the pseudo-artistic colony that made its headquarters not far away from her domicile.
From Apron-Strings by Gates, Eleanor
In her free time, Annie loves to make random playlists, doodle in her reporter’s notebook and go antiquing.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 27, 2025
Two lamps weren’t just two lamps, but the best outing she spent antiquing with my grandmother before she passed away from Alzheimer’s disease.
From Slate ● Aug. 5, 2024
“We love to go to estate sales and antiquing together — it’s hard sometimes because we all like the same things!”
From Seattle Times ● May 10, 2023
At this year’s TromaDance, the Demmers sat in lawn chairs next to a newly renovated drive-in speaker that Mr. Demmer found and repaired while antiquing in Detroit.
From New York Times ● Jul. 9, 2021
She went antiquing and hung an old washboard on the wall.
From "Middlesex: A Novel" by Jeffrey Eugenides
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.
