ANCIENTLY Synonyms: 20 Similar and Opposite Words

anciently

adverb

Definition of anciently

as in previously

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Example Sentences

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Recent Examples of anciently Tell El-Fara’in, anciently known as Imet, was a significant urban and religious hub from the Middle Kingdom onward. — Maria Mocerino, Interesting Engineering, 14 Sep. 2025 It was used anciently as a preservative, a seasoning, and medicinally for its antibacterial properties. — Daryl Austin, USA TODAY, 2 Feb. 2024

Recent Examples of Synonyms for anciently

Adverb

Rogers struggled during a July 9 meeting to assuage disability advocates' concerns about potential bureaucratic dysfunction caused by the shift, USA TODAY previously reported.

— Zachary Schermele, USA Today, 10 Sep. 2026
He’d previously been expected to close out the convention’s second night but ended up swapping spots with Vice President JD Vance, the likely GOP nominee in the 2028 general election.

— Christian Datoc, The Washington Examiner, 10 Sep. 2026

Definition of previously

Adverb

By early afternoon the video had been seen more than 21 million times on X, formerly Twitter.

— Lisa Gutierrez, Kansas City Star, 11 Sep. 2026
Designed around an Art Deco building that formerly housed a Citroën garage, the new 430,000-square-foot complex at Place de l’Yser on the banks of the Charleroi-Brussels Canal is Brussels’ only major modern and contemporary art museum.

— News Desk, Artforum, 11 Sep. 2026

Definition of formerly

Adverb

Programs such as HyCAT are intended to provide more frequent opportunities to test technologies in realistic flight conditions, potentially allowing developers to identify problems earlier and iterate more quickly.

— Bojan Stojkovski, Interesting Engineering, 6 Sep. 2026
The National Weather Service called for blowing dust early Friday evening and a 20% chance of rain on Sunday for nearby Gerlach, Nevada, a community of 58 people about 100 miles north of Reno.

— Dennis Romero, NBC news, 5 Sep. 2026

Definition of early

Adverb

After all, the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) made this call for its The Hundred competition two years ago and raised more than £500million for the county and grassroots game.

— Matt Slater, New York Times, 8 Sep. 2026
Production of the first submarine in this class began several years ago.

— Prabhat Ranjan Mishra, Interesting Engineering, 7 Sep. 2026