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

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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

"Caleb resurrected a statistical technique from a bygone era," said co-author Jacques Gauthier, a professor of Earth and planetary sciences at Yale and curator-in-charge for vertebrate paleontology at the Peabody Museum.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 25, 2026

From old Hollywood's Marilyn Monroe to adorning singer Sabrina Carpenter in a pearly dress reminiscent of the 90s, Mackie's ensembles felt new and exciting – even when they recalled a bygone age.

From BBC ● Sep. 15, 2026

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

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

They used her Uncle Nicolas’s books, the dishes, the boxes, the furniture, and the drapes of bygone days to arrange their astonishing nuptial chamber.

From "The House of the Spirits: A Novel" by Isabel Allende

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