postmodern

adjective

post·​mod·​ern ˌpōs(t)-ˈmä-dərn 

nonstandard -ˈmä-d(ə-)rən

1

: of, relating to, or being an era after a modern one

postmodern times

a postmodern metropolis

2

a

: of, relating to, or being any of various movements in reaction to modernism that are typically characterized by a return to traditional materials and forms (as in architecture) or by ironic self-reference and absurdity (as in literature)

b

: of, relating to, or being a theory that involves a radical reappraisal of modern assumptions about culture, identity, history, or language

postmodern feminism

postmodernism

ˌpōs(t)-ˈmä-dər-ˌni-zəm 

noun

postmodernist

ˌpōs(t)-ˈmä-dər-nist 

adjective or noun

postmodernity

ˌpōs(t)-mə-ˈdər-ne-tē 

-mä-

also -ˈder-

noun

Examples of postmodern in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

In the 1980s, Hardy Holzman Pfeiffer’s proposal to crown the museum by topping it with a 23-story postmodern ziggurat condo tower enraged Upper West Side neighbors. —Justin Davidson, Curbed, 3 Dec. 2025

Each shot looks like a page out of a cursed tome of twisted, postmodern fairy tales, the images forbidding and slightly abstract. —Alison Willmore, Vulture, 1 Dec. 2025

He is known for postmodern and apocalyptic novels. —Brittney Melton, NPR, 10 Oct. 2025

Retaining this almost postmodern sentence might have prompted readers to interpret Karl’s mis-perception in exclusively psychological terms. —Literary Hub, 6 Oct. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1916, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for postmodern

• premodern
• modern