time immemorial

noun

1

: time so long past as to be indefinite in history or tradition

called also time out of mind

2

: a time antedating a period legally fixed as the basis for a custom or right

Examples of time immemorial in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

From time immemorial, indigenous people occupied areas around San Pedro Creek taking advantage of its incredible natural abundance. —Chadd Scott, Forbes.com, 10 Aug. 2025

Independently, the three land on the same Greyhound bound to Nashville, the mecca of emotional salvation and professional hopes for fledgling country music practitioners time immemorial. —Christopher Smith, Oc Register, 4 Aug. 2025

Then a twist of fate and tragedy casts the subhuman nature of this treatment in a fresh light, and Alma, with a terrible new understanding, does what grown women for time immemorial have done. —Alison Willmore, Vulture, 14 May 2025

The word first appeared as a verb and interjection in the 19th century, though the sound itself goes back to time immemorial. —Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 5 May 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1593, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Rhymes for time immemorial

• ambassadorial
• combinatorial
• conspiratorial
• gladiatorial
• gubernatorial
• inquisitorial
• mediatorial
• multifactorial
• prosecutorial
• supratentorial
• arboreal
• armorial

Legal Definition

time immemorial

noun

time im·​me·​mo·​ri·​al

-ˌi-mə-ˈmȯr-ē-əl

1

: a time beyond legal memory formerly fixed by English law as the beginning of the reign of Richard I in 1189 but modified in common law

2

: a time going back beyond the memory of any living person