yesterday

1 of 2

adverb

yes·ter·day ˈye-stər-(ˌ)dā

-dē

Synonyms of yesterday next

: on the day last past : on the day preceding today

: at a time not long past : only a short time ago

I wasn't born yesterday

yesterday

2 of 2

noun

: the day last past : the day next before the present

: recent time : time not long past

: past time

—usually used in plural

Examples of yesterday in a Sentence

Adverb It rained heavily yesterday afternoon. I mailed the application early yesterday morning. It was good to see you yesterday. Noun Yesterday's game was canceled because of the rain. The radio program features yesterday's songs as well as today's. Today's cars aren't all that different from the models of yesterday. See More

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Valtonen and others also say that the time for the organization to have its first woman leader was yesterday. —

Stephanie Fillion, CNN, 29 Sep. 2023 Still, the war may as well have been yesterday for all of the old bigot’s antics and the vinegary asides by his Black employees. —

Peter Marks, Washington Post, 28 Sep. 2023 Meanwhile, Senate leaders released a short-term funding bill yesterday that would keep money flowing until Nov. 17 and give Congress more time to reach a larger agreement. —

Elizabeth Robinson, NBC News, 27 Sep. 2023 The extravagant and hearty meal is very much welcome after yesterday’s double french-fry moment. —

Bon Appétit Contributor, Bon Appétit, 22 Sep. 2023 Correction: The online version of yesterday’s newsletter has been corrected to reflect that Darrow raised $35 million in Series B funding, not $25 million. —

Jessica Mathews, Fortune, 21 Sep. 2023 Much of yesterday’s testimony took place in a closed session, during which reporters and the public were not allowed in court at all. —

Adi Robertson, The Verge, 21 Sep. 2023 None have matched the revelations of yesterday’s bombshell. —

Byleo Schwartz, Fortune Crypto, 20 Sep. 2023 The last of the corpses was recovered yesterday morning. —

NBC News, 12 Sep. 2023 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'yesterday.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Adverb

Middle English yisterday, from Old English giestran dæg, from giestran yesterday + dæg day; akin to Old High German gestaron yesterday, Latin heri, Greek chthes

First Known Use

Adverb

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler

The first known use of yesterday was before the 12th century

See more words from the same century