vintage

1 of 2

noun

vin·​tage ˈvin-tij 

1

a(1)

: a season's yield of grapes or wine from a vineyard

(2)

: wine

especially : a usually superior wine all or most of which comes from a single year

b

: a collection of contemporaneous and similar persons or things : crop

2

: the act or time of harvesting grapes or making wine

3

a

: a period of origin or manufacture

a piano of 1845 vintage

b

: length of existence : age

vintage

2 of 2

adjective

1

of wine : of, relating to, or produced in a particular vintage

2

: of old, recognized, and enduring interest, importance, or quality : classic

3

a

: dating from the past : old

b

: outmoded, old-fashioned

4

: of the best and most characteristic

—used with a proper noun

vintage Shaw: a wise and winning comedy

—Time

Synonyms

Adjective

• antique
• retro
• historic
• historical

Examples of vintage in a Sentence

Noun

a piano of 1845 vintage

Adjective

the designer's bracelets and necklaces have the vintage look of jewelry from the 1920s

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Coronado hosted the Coronado Speed Festival vintage car races from 1997 to 2015 at the North Island Naval Air Station as part of Fleet Week. —Bill Center, San Diego Union-Tribune, 23 June 2025

Since then, Michigan’s vintages have raked in scores of awards at international competitions, including 66 medals at the 2024 Texsom International Wine Competition. —Alexandra Gillespie, AFAR Media, 23 June 2025

Adjective

Julianne Jordan supervised the recording, and David Newman — whose family roots go back to 1930s Hollywood and who specializes in vintage film music restoration and bygone performance techniques — conducted. —Tim Greiving, HollywoodReporter, 25 June 2025

One reader loves to give vintage deviled egg plates, paired with a small jar of fancy mustard or a little jar of pickles in a cute bag. —Betsy Cribb Watson, Southern Living, 20 June 2025

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English, probably alteration of vendage, from Anglo-French vendage, vendenge, from Latin vindemia grape-gathering, vintage, from vinum wine, grapes + demere to take off, from de- + emere to take — more at wine, redeem

First Known Use

Noun

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a(1)

Adjective

1601, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing vintage

• vintage year

Rhymes for vintage

• mintage

Kids Definition

vintage

noun

vin·​tage

ˈvint-ij

1

a

: the grapes or wine produced during one season

b

: wine entry 1 sense 1

2

: a period in which something was made or was begun

a violin of 1820 vintage

vintage adjective

Etymology

Noun

Middle English vintage, an altered form of vendage "the grapes picked during a season," from early French vendage, vendenge (same meaning), from Latin vindemia (same meaning), from vinum "wine, grapes" and demere "to take off" — related to vine, vinegar