defunct

adjective de·funct \ di-ˈfəŋkt , dē- \

|Updated on: 14 Jun 2018

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Examples: defunct in a Sentence

Editor's Note: Did You Know?

Definition of defunct

: no longer living, existing, or functioning

wrote for a magazine that is now defunct

a defunct railroad

See defunct defined for English-language learners

See defunct defined for kids

Examples of defunct in a Sentence

She wrote for the now-defunct newspaper.
a stack of brochures and a few faded placards are all that remain of the defunct organization

Recent Examples of defunct from the Web

There were lawsuits filed by Dynus, a now-defunct fiber optics company, and the county against each other.

— sarah brookbank, Cincinnati.com, "Jailed ex-Dynus owner Orlando Carter seeks $500M in damages from John Boehner, PNC, others," 11 June 2018
The city was also the home base for Volksfront, a now-defunct white separatist organization founded in 1994, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center, which tracks hate groups.

— Washington Post, "Violent protests again draw attention to Portland, Oregon," 10 June 2018
The city was also the home base for Volksfront, a now-defunct white separatist organization founded in 1994, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center, which tracks hate groups.

— Fox News, "Violent skirmishes between Antifa, right-wing activists draw national attention to Portland, Oregon," 9 June 2018
When the Texas Theatre opened in 1931, patrons climbed these stairs to the now-defunct balcony as part of an entertainment experience meant to offer cutting-edge technology in an elegant setting.

— joe pappalardo, Popular Mechanics, "There Are Secrets in the Texas Theatre," 25 May 2018
He was soon introduced to Jake Kelfer, then a junior business administration major at USC and one of the more seasoned interns at the now-defunct agency.

— jake fischer, SI.com, "How a Summer Internship Spawned the Newest Venue for NBA Hopefuls," 21 May 2018
BuzzFeed was able to view posts from the now-defunct site, Degree180, through the Internet Archive.

— anne branigin, The Root, "Your Girl Candace Owens Ran a Trump-Bashing Website Less Than 2 Years Ago. Color Us Shocked," 16 May 2018
This season with the RailCats will be his fourth in the American Association after two with now-defunct Joplin and one with Cleburne.

— michael osipoff, Post-Tribune, "Glasser not full yet: Well-traveled Chicago native Mitch Glasser offers up ton of versatility for RailCats," 12 May 2018
He's also credited as the designer of this 1979 pinball machine manufactured by the now-defunct Elk Grove Village company GamePlan.

— ryan smith, Chicago Reader, "The First Family of pinball: Meet the local wizards behind the game's huge resurgence," 3 May 2018

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

Did You Know?

If you know that de- often means "the opposite of", it's easy to guess the meaning of defunct. Shakespeare seems to have been the first writer to use this adjective, in Henry V. Defunct American political parties include the Greenback Party, the Readjuster Party, and the Nullifier Party. Defunct Academy Awards categories include Best Dance Direction and Best Assistant Director. Defunct U.S. auto models include the Dudly Bug, the LuLu, the Hupmobile, the Gas-au-lec, and the Nu-Klea Starlite. But to speak of a person as defunct would sound disrespectful—which is how it sounds in e. e. cummings's famous poem "Buffalo Bill's defunct".

Origin and Etymology of defunct

Latin defunctus, from past participle of defungi to finish, die, from de- + fungi to perform — more at function

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First Known Use: 1599

in the meaning defined above

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defunct Synonyms

Phrases

bitten the dust;

Synonym Discussion of defunct

dead, defunct, deceased, departed, late mean devoid of life. dead applies literally to what is deprived of vital force but is used figuratively of anything that has lost any attribute (such as energy, activity, radiance) suggesting life.