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Newfangled is actually a pretty old word. It dates all the way back to the 15th century, and likely developed from the even older adjective newfangle, which probably derives from a combination of the Middle English newe, meaning new, and the Old English fangol, from a verb meaning "to take." In its earliest documented uses, newfangled described a person who was fond of new things, fashions, or ideas. Current usage indicates that newfangled is used—sometimes deprecatingly—to describe anything that is new, hip, hot, or happening, while other times it is used with irony for something—such as rock music—that might have been new at one time but is hardly new anymore.

Examples of newfangled in a Sentence

His grandson owns all of the latest newfangled electronics. the newfangled speech used by teenagers

Recent Examples on the Web Nevertheless, Berkshire’s exposure to cryptocurrency through its investment in traditional banks has increased as more banks offer services in the newfangled fintech product. — Eamon Barrett, Fortune, 17 Feb. 2022 There were no excuses, no admissions of guilt, no newfangled formations. — Gordon Monson, The Salt Lake Tribune, 28 Nov. 2021 But the newfangled hardware never crept down to mainstream laptops. — Brad Chacos, PCWorld, 11 May 2021 Isaac Newton’s newfangled ideas about how objects moved, and the physics of electricity. — Kiona N. Smith, Forbes, 17 Apr. 2021 Six months ago, Utah’s newfangled road map to brisk economic health after COVID-19 seemed almost like magical thinking. — The Salt Lake Tribune, 21 Mar. 2021 Pure Storage has come a long way from its days as just another disruptive startup peddling its newfangled flash storage array. — Steve Mcdowell, Forbes, 25 Feb. 2021 The Federal Reserve’s newfangled policy regime of lower interest rates and higher inflation for longer periods portends continued losses. — Kevin Warsh, WSJ, 4 Jan. 2021 Addressing these three seemingly nontech issues would do more to enable a tech-forward government than any newfangled shiny object. — Danah Boyd, Wired, 23 Dec. 2020 See More

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