Victorian

[ vik-tawr-ee-uhn, -tohr- ]

/ vɪkˈtɔr i ən, -ˈtoʊr- /

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adjective

of or relating to Queen Victoria or the period of her reign: Victorian poets.

having the characteristics usually attributed to the Victorians, especially prudishness and observance of the conventionalities.

Architecture.

noting or pertaining to the architecture, furnishings, and decoration of English-speaking countries between c1840 and c1900, characterized by rapid changes of style as a consequence of aesthetic and philosophical controversy, technological innovations, and changes of fashion, by the frequent presence of ostentatious ornament, and by an overall trend from classicism at the start to romanticism and eclecticism at the middle of the period and thence to classicism again, with attempts at stylistic innovation occurring from time to time.
noting or pertaining to the massive, elaborate work characteristic especially of the period c1855–80, derived mainly from the Baroque and Gothic styles and characterized by the presence of heavy carved ornament, elaborate moldings, etc., by the use of strong and generally dark colors, by the frequent use of dark varnished woodwork, by the emphasis on geometrical form rather than on textural effects, and frequently by an effect of harshness.

noun

a person who lived during the Victorian period.

a house in or imitative of the Victorian style.

OTHER WORDS FOR Victorian

2 prudish, conventional, priggish, straightlaced, smug, prim, narrow.

See synonyms for Victorian on Thesaurus.com

QUIZ

THINGAMABOB OR THINGUMMY: CAN YOU DISTINGUISH BETWEEN THE US AND UK TERMS IN THIS QUIZ?

Do you know the difference between everyday US and UK terminology? Test yourself with this quiz on words that differ across the Atlantic.

Question 1 of 7

In the UK, COTTON CANDY is more commonly known as…

candystring

candyfloss

candypuff

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Origin of Victorian

First recorded in 1870–75; Victori(a) + -an

OTHER WORDS FROM Victorian

post-Vic·to·ri·an, adjectivepre-Vic·to·ri·an, adjectivepseu·do-Vic·to·ri·an, adjective, nounun-Vic·to·ri·an, adjective

Words nearby Victorian

Victoria Day, Victoria Desert, Victoria Falls, Victoria Island, Victoria Land, Victorian, Victoriana, Victorian box, Victoria Nile, Victorianism, Victorian period

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use Victorian in a sentence

Little wonder that George MacDonald Fraser, chronicler of Flashman, that greatest of all Victorian antiheroes, loved “Under the Red Robe.”
Flashing blades, secret passages, mistaken identities: ‘A Gentleman of France’ is a classic adventure tale|Michael Dirda|September 1, 2021|Washington Post
Plants invented “steamy but not touchy” long before the Victorian novel — much flowering, perfuming and maybe green yearning, all without direct contact of reproductive organs.
The first step in using trees to slow climate change: Protect the trees we have|Susan Milius|July 13, 2021|Science News
Much of the way we understand the Royal Family today, as a public-facing family and in its relationship with the media, was consolidated during the Victorian era, alongside the development of photographic practice and mass printed media.
The Little-Known History Behind the People of Color Who Joined the Royal Family Long Before Meghan|Suyin Haynes|March 12, 2021|Time
Though restrictions are being eased gradually, the Victorian government would have to approve the tournament bringing international players to the country.
Plan for Australian Open includes three-week delay, strict coronavirus measures, and fans|Liz Clarke|December 2, 2020|Washington Post

I noticed Victorian homes, Spanish mission–style churches, and the way land and water interlocked.
How Biking Across America Formed an Unlikely Friendship|Raffi Joe Wartanian|October 8, 2020|Outside Online
The Industrial Revolution and Victorian practically erased the holiday in England.
How Dickens and Scrooge Saved Christmas|Clive Irving|December 22, 2014|DAILY BEAST
To him, Churchill “was radical precisely because he was conservative” and “essentially a buccaneering Victorian Whig.”
Boris Johnson’s Churchill Man Crush|Michael F. Bishop|November 22, 2014|DAILY BEAST
According to Wynd, “Freddie Mercury once said he wanted to lead a Victorian life surrounded by exquisite clutter.”
Dodo Bones and Kylie’s Poo: Inside London’s Strangest New Museum|Liza Foreman|November 11, 2014|DAILY BEAST
A Victorian-style couch now stands in the spot where Mr. Borden was killed while he napped.
Would You Stay in Lizzie Borden’s Ax-Murder House?|Nina Strochlic|October 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Your Victorian lesbians were sexy, vocal, recognizable, and radical too, I say.
Sarah Waters: Queen of the Tortured Lesbian Romance|Tim Teeman|September 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST
It was a room without beauty, merely walls, repapered once every twenty years, and furniture of the mid-Victorian era.
The Doctor of Pimlico|William Le Queux
Now death by the mid-Victorian was considered almost as undesirable an element in society as sex itself.
The Letters of Ambrose Bierce|Ambrose Bierce
But to Bierce's mind, "noble and nude and antique," this mid-Victorian draping and bedecking of "unpleasant truths" was abhorrent.
The Letters of Ambrose Bierce|Ambrose Bierce
Bad puns were evidently common on the stage before the days of Victorian burlesque.
Witch, Warlock, and Magician|William Henry Davenport Adams
Before morning the Victorian would be running up the St. Lawrence.
The Highgrader|William MacLeod Raine

British Dictionary definitions for Victorian

Victorian

/ (vɪkˈtɔːrɪən) /

adjective

of, relating to, or characteristic of Queen Victoria or the period of her reign

exhibiting the characteristics popularly attributed to the Victorians, esp prudery, bigotry, or hypocrisyCompare Victorian values

denoting, relating to, or having the style of architecture used in Britain during the reign of Queen Victoria, characterized by massive construction and elaborate ornamentation

of or relating to Victoria (the state or any of the cities)

noun

a person who lived during the reign of Queen Victoria

an inhabitant of Victoria (the state or any of the cities)

Derived forms of Victorian

Victorianism, noun

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

Cultural definitions for Victorian

Victorian

A descriptive term for the time when Victoria was queen of England, from 1837 to 1901. The Victorian period in England is known as a time of industrial progress, colonial expansion, and public fastidiousness in morals. The Victorian period in the United States had many of the same characteristics.