the ancients
plural noun
: the people who lived in ancient times : the people of ancient Greece and Rome
a temple built by the ancients
the gods of the ancients
Examples of the ancients in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
This often meant using classical design principles like restraint, order and geometric harmony, and adapting them by either simplifying the elements or using locally available materials instead of the expensive marble and other stones favored by the ancients.
—
Kevin D. Murphy, The Conversation, 10 Apr. 2026
Another notable thinker after the ancients who addressed this question was Hobbes.
—George G. Szpiro, Big Think, 9 Apr. 2026
With a life that nearly bookended the 20th century, modern dance titan Martha Graham had one eye on the ancients and another on the contemporary moment.
—Laura Regensdorf, Vogue, 31 Mar. 2026
For every Pollak that offered a rejoinder to the fascist appropriation of Greece and Rome, there were apologists and collaborators who gladly excavated the ancients for the purposes of modern regimes.
—Literary Hub, 10 Feb. 2026
There was nothing tame about the dog of the heavens as conceived by the ancients.
—Joe Rao, Space.com, 23 Jan. 2026
The idea of a common humanity, in this very stakesy view, is not an invention that separates us from the ancients but an inheritance that connects us to them.
—Adam Gopnik, New Yorker, 8 Dec. 2025
From the beginning, alongside the rules for building in the style of the ancients, Renaissance architects set forth rules for transgressing them.
—Mario Carpo, Artforum, 1 Feb. 2025
Falling in love felt so powerful that the ancients thought seeing the love object caused a wound in your eyes.
—Shadi Bartsch, The Mercury News, 3 Jan. 2025
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Kevin D. Murphy, The Conversation, 10 Apr. 2026
Another notable thinker after the ancients who addressed this question was Hobbes.
—George G. Szpiro, Big Think, 9 Apr. 2026
With a life that nearly bookended the 20th century, modern dance titan Martha Graham had one eye on the ancients and another on the contemporary moment.
—Laura Regensdorf, Vogue, 31 Mar. 2026
For every Pollak that offered a rejoinder to the fascist appropriation of Greece and Rome, there were apologists and collaborators who gladly excavated the ancients for the purposes of modern regimes.
—Literary Hub, 10 Feb. 2026
There was nothing tame about the dog of the heavens as conceived by the ancients.
—Joe Rao, Space.com, 23 Jan. 2026
The idea of a common humanity, in this very stakesy view, is not an invention that separates us from the ancients but an inheritance that connects us to them.
—Adam Gopnik, New Yorker, 8 Dec. 2025
From the beginning, alongside the rules for building in the style of the ancients, Renaissance architects set forth rules for transgressing them.
—Mario Carpo, Artforum, 1 Feb. 2025
Falling in love felt so powerful that the ancients thought seeing the love object caused a wound in your eyes.
—Shadi Bartsch, The Mercury News, 3 Jan. 2025
Cite this Entry
“The ancients.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/the%20ancients. Accessed 20 Apr. 2026.
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