Main Entry: ar·cha·ic

Pronunciation: \är-ˈkā-ik\

Function: adjective

Etymology: French or Greek; French archaïque, from Greek archaïkos, from archaios

Date: 1832

1 : having the characteristics of the language of the past and surviving chiefly in specialized uses <an archaic word>
2 : of, relating to, or characteristic of an earlier or more primitive time : antiquated <archaic legal traditions>
3 capitalized : of or belonging to the early or formative phases of a culture or a period of artistic development; especially : of or belonging to the period leading up to the classical period of Greek culture
4 : surviving from an earlier period; specifically : typical of a previously dominant evolutionary stage
5 capitalized : of or relating to the period from about 8000 b.c. to 1000 b.c. and the North American cultures of that time

synonyms see old

— ar·cha·i·cal·ly \-i-k(ə-)lē\ adverb