bygone

American  

[bahy-gawn, -gon] / ˈbaɪˌgɔn, -ˌgɒn /

adjective

1. past; gone by; earlier; former.

   The faded photograph brought memories of bygone days.

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noun

1. Usually bygones. that which is past.

   Let's not talk of bygones.

idioms

1. let bygones be bygones, to decide to forget past disagreements; become reconciled.

   Let's let bygones be bygones and be friends again.

bygone British  

/ ˈbaɪˌɡɒn /

adjective

1. (usually prenominal) past; former

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noun

1. (often plural) a past occurrence

2. (often plural) an artefact, implement, etc, of former domestic or industrial use, now often collected for interest

3. to agree to forget past quarrels

Etymology

Origin of bygone

1375–1425; late Middle English (north) by-gane; see gone, by

Explanation

The adjective bygone is good for describing long-ago times. Your grandparents might enjoy looking at old photo albums and reminiscing about bygone days. A bygone era happened in the distant past, and a bygone sweetheart is an early romantic interest remembered by someone who's since lived a long life. You're most likely to see the phrase "bygone days" being used in a nostalgic way. If someone says, "Let bygones be bygones," they want to make up for long-ago slights and arguments, leaving them in the past where they belong.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

bygone

Harry Styles’ queer residency, and other spectacles like it, are what is left until a new bygone era arrives in time.

From Salon ● Sep. 6, 2026

Leprosy has been so long a part of human history that it has become associated with a bygone world.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 4, 2026

This mourning for a bygone era is a mourning for a time when Chinese families felt that if they worked hard, their lives would improve.

From BBC ● Aug. 18, 2026

He’s not unaware that Meyers’ mostly 20-something male friends have — like many — romanticized the gritty abandon of lower Manhattan’s bygone literary scene and perhaps Ed’s tenuous place in it.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 14, 2026

In each location the reunion drew large crowds, in which witnesses claimed they saw two ghosts from a bygone era materializing one final time for the benefit of the present generation.

From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis