expired

adjective

ex·​pired ik-ˈspī(-ə)rd How to pronounce expired (audio)
ek-
1
formal : dead, deceased
often used as a euphemistic or humorous alternative to dead
A shovel, bucket, trash bags, and gloves are also useful items for cleaning up expired wildlife.Jeffrey Price and Jeffrey Forrest
… I've exercised my maternal instincts on him, doing a far better job of keeping him alive than all those expired plants now in the great compost pile in the sky.Kerry Quinn
There, firmly lodged within the pipe and obstructing the flow of water, was a catfish. The expired creature was removed, brought on board, and mounted in the main passenger cabin for all to see.John Laurence Busch
2
: no longer valid : having exceeded its period of validity
expired licenses
an expired contract
… Mr. Adams uses homemade software to download online books with expired copyrights …Michael M. Phillips
3
: having passed its expiration date (see expiration date sense 2)
expired milk
expired drugs
… networks that now take us into the homes of people who treasure their expired tuna cans more than they do their children …Carina Chocano
4
: emitted as or in a person's breath : breathed out
… the person exhales into a container at regular intervals and technicians measure the amount of hydrogen in the expired air.Colleen Sauber

Examples of expired in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web The Bad River Band filed a lawsuit against Enbridge in 2019, asking the company to remove the pipeline, which is operating on 12 miles of its land with an expired easement. Caitlin Looby, Journal Sentinel, 14 Mar. 2024 Expand All When a Bonner Springs police officer began chasing a man in June 2021 for an expired license plate, speeds on Interstate 70 escalated to 100 mph. Katie Moore, Kansas City Star, 25 Feb. 2024 More than 850 stores and 70,000 unionized grocery store workers were covered by the expired contracts, and 59,000 were on strike or locked out. Helen Li, Los Angeles Times, 25 Aug. 2023 But the fact one of the passengers was an unauthorized immigrant with an expired U.S. residence permit triggered questions beyond the pot. Peter Hecht, Sacramento Bee, 21 Feb. 2024 The hip-hop artist was pulled over for another traffic incident while driving a car without a license tag and using an expired license, leading to his arrest. Sadie Bell, Peoplemag, 18 Jan. 2024 Having up-to-date devices is particularly important for schools, which have unique security needs and may not be able to access things like online state testing with an expired Chromebook. Scharon Harding, Ars Technica, 4 Aug. 2023 That said, the concept of clutter includes the mental processes involved in holding out hope for expired options. Amy Lindgren, Twin Cities, 20 Jan. 2024 The chickens are fed a diet of expired or unused human food. Laura Reiley, Washington Post, 10 Nov. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'expired.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1631, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of expired was in 1631

Dictionary Entries Near expired

Cite this Entry

“Expired.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/expired. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

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