prehistoric

adjective

pre·​his·​tor·​ic ˌprē-(h)i-ˈstȯr-ik 

-ˈstär-

variants or less commonly prehistorical

ˌprē-(h)i-ˈstȯr-i-kəl 

-ˈstär-

1

: of, relating to, or existing in times antedating written history

2

: of or relating to a language in a period of its development from which contemporary records of its sounds and forms have not been preserved

3

: regarded as being outdated or outmoded

prehistoric attitudes

prehistorically

ˌprē-(h)i-ˈstȯr-i-k(ə-)lē 

-ˈstär-

adverb

Synonyms of prehistoric

• archaic
• obsolete
• medieval
• antiquated
• neolithic

Examples of prehistoric in a Sentence

His attitudes about women are downright prehistoric.

prehistoric notions about mental illness that have no place in today's world

Recent Examples on the Web

That sets these findings apart from other instances where skeletal remains of prehistoric societies were found to be physically manipulated in similar ways. —Emily Mae Czachor, CBS News, 9 June 2026

The Fyne Audio Cubitt 5 is the name given to a pair of state-of-the-art Bluetooth bookshelf speakers that make your humble superstore own brand setup seem like a prehistoric ear trumpet. —New Atlas, 8 June 2026

Each spring the skies over central Nebraska fill with a special sound—a rolling, trumpeting, almost prehistoric chorus—as a slew of sandhill cranes descend on the wide and shallow reaches of the Platte River. —Arati Menon, Condé Nast Traveler, 7 June 2026

Perhaps this story will even inspire a prehistoric comedy. —Maria Mocerino, Interesting Engineering, 6 June 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1832, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for prehistoric

• anaphoric
• metaphoric
• meteoric
• paregoric
• pyrophoric
• boric
• chloric
• doric
• toric
• caloric
• dysphoric
• euphoric

Kids Definition

prehistoric

adjective

pre·​his·​tor·​ic ˌprē-(h)is-ˈtȯr-ik 

-ˈtär-

: of, relating to, or existing in times before written history

prehistoric animals

prehistorically

-i-k(ə-)lē 

adverb