antiquity

noun

an·tiq·ui·ty | \an-ˈti-kwə-tē

plural antiquities

Definition of antiquity

1 : ancient times especially : those before the Middle Ages a town that dates from antiquity

2 : the quality of being ancient a castle of great antiquity

3 antiquities plural

a : relics or monuments (such as coins, statues, or buildings) of ancient times a museum of Greek antiquities

b : matters relating to the life or culture of ancient times the study of Germanic antiquities

4 : the people of ancient times records left by antiquity

Synonyms & Antonyms More Example Sentences Learn More about antiquity

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Synonyms & Antonyms for antiquity

Synonyms

age, agedness, ancientness, hoariness

Antonyms

newness

Examples of antiquity in a Sentence

The town dates from antiquity. A palace stood here in antiquity. a museum of Roman antiquities

Recent Examples on the Web

But this category of diverse pours — sourced from a country whose winemaking reaches back to antiquity — offers so much more. — Ellen Bhang, BostonGlobe.com, "Set the table with these distinctive Greek wines," 2 July 2018 Egypt has drastically stepped up efforts in recent years to stop the trafficking of its antiquities. — Fox News, "Egypt repatriates stolen ancient artifacts from France," 7 June 2018 Evolving policies Bennett's time in Cleveland unfolded while policies regarding the collection of antiquities by American art museums were evolving. — Steven Litt, cleveland.com, "Curator who defended purchase of Apollo bronze leaves Cleveland Museum of Art for Florida job," 24 Feb. 2018 One soon comes to realize that the book’s title and preface are window dressing for what is, in essence, a Cook’s tour of European civilization from Greek antiquity to the end of the Renaissance. — James Romm, WSJ, "‘Know Thyself’ Review: The Evolution of a Culture," 10 June 2018 Ever since antiquity, Mykonos has always been a party island. — Morgan Sykes, The Cut, "See Mykonos Through the Eye of an Acclaimed Greek Photographer," 15 Apr. 2018 If the 1928 Arp wall piece at Hauser & Wirth is not in the cards, two categories of collecting still provide an opportunity to get the very best for what amounts, in Masterpiece terms, to good value: antiquities and 18th century silver. — David Netto, Town & Country, "All the Treasures at the Masterpiece Design Fair in London," 29 June 2018 The National Museum in Damascus, which locked up its prized antiquities for protection, is preparing to reopen to the public. — The Economist, "How a victorious Bashar al-Assad is changing Syria," 28 June 2018 His father was a buyer for a family business that imported arts and antiquities, mostly from Japan, and his mother was a homemaker. — Ellie Silverman, Washington Post, "Alexander Orr, co-founder of experimental Hawthorne School, dies at 94," 29 May 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'antiquity.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.