Definition of antedate
: a date assigned to an event or document earlier than the actual date of the event or document
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Did You Know?
Dinosaurs antedated the first human beings by almost 65 million years, though this stubborn fact never used to stop cartoonists and screenwriters from having the two species inhabit the same story line. Dictionary editors are constantly noticing how the oral use of a word may antedate its first appearance in print by a number of years. Antedating a check or a contract isn't illegal unless it's done for the purpose of fraud (the same is true of its opposite, postdating).
15th Century
First Known Use of antedate
15th century
Other Calendar Terms
Definition of antedate
transitive verb
1a : to date as of a time prior to that of executionb : to assign to a date prior to that of actual occurrence
2 archaic : anticipate
3 : to precede in time
Examples of antedate in a sentence
The church antedates the village itself.
dinosaurs antedate cavemen by millions of years
1568
First Known Use of antedate
1568
Other Calendar Terms
ANTEDATE Defined for English Language Learners
Definition of antedate for English Language Learners
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: to give an earlier date rather than the actual date to (something)
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: to be earlier or older than (something)
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