postimperial

adjective

post·​im·​pe·​ri·​al ˌpōst-im-ˈpir-ē-əl How to pronounce postimperial (audio)
: of, relating to, or occurring in the period following the dissolution of an empire
postimperial Britain
Although the postwar system of international relations was not static, it is right to call it postimperial.Robert Skidelsky

Examples of postimperial in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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From the very beginning, then, joining Europe was motivated not by some Damascene realization that decline was inevitable—an acceptance of postimperial reality—but by the belief that such decline could be averted. Tom McTague, The Atlantic, 18 Sep. 2022 Against this harsh reality, the submarine deal appears to reflect a declining superpower, riven by internal discord and imperiled by democratic collapse, leading a diminished postimperial power down a cul-de-sac of geopolitical irrelevance. Jonathan Stevenson, The New York Review of Books, 13 Oct. 2021

Word History

First Known Use

1836, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of postimperial was in 1836

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Cite this Entry

“Postimperial.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/postimperial. Accessed 10 Sep. 2025.

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