archetypes

noun

plural of archetype
1
as in forerunners
something belonging to an earlier time from which something else was later developed the abacus is sometimes cited as the archetype of the modern digital calculator

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in originals
something from which copies are made Beowulf is considered by some scholars to be the archetype for medieval British heroic tales

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of archetypes Ivan, the younger son, is doubtful and skeptical of his father, whereas Andrey, the elder, is faithful and trusting—the twin archetypes of man’s relation to the divine. — Joshua Yaffa, New Yorker, 2 Nov. 2026 But perhaps the image of Minaj onstage will inspire the MAGA set to adopt Demna’s revamp of the house—some of the caricatural archetypes in his most recent collection certainly leaned conservative. — José Criales-Unzueta, Vanity Fair, 28 Oct. 2026 Beyond prep, Jules theorized as to how Lauren can so effectively blur and co-mingle so many different archetypes. — Luke Leitch, Vogue, 26 Oct. 2026 He is surrounded by a parade of savvier comic archetypes — from his urbane, happily rational brother, Beralde (Dylan Baker), to his smart-aleck maid, Toinette (Rachel Bloom, giving eternal side-eye) — who have to either evade or manipulate him. — Sara Holdren, Vulture, 23 Oct. 2026 Real Social pulls inspiration from archetypes and stereotypes. — Angela Velasquez, Footwear News, 19 Oct. 2026 Matthew’s three kids are just TV archetypes, rarely resembling real people at all. — Daniel Fienberg, HollywoodReporter, 23 Sep. 2026 During the war, Pavese immersed himself in Greek tragedy, as well as the anthropological writings of Frazer and Lévy-Bruhl, Freud on childhood and the narrative technique of dreams, and Jung on the archetypes of the collective unconscious. — Max Norman, Harpers Magazine, 22 Sep. 2026 In the same way that somebody brings something to a new Harry Potter series or a James Bond or something of that nature that has a kind of cyclical storytelling element with different repeating archetypes. — Jennifer Maas, Variety, 10 Sep. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for archetypes
  1. forerunners
  2. originals
  3. ancestors
  4. prototypes
  5. precursors
  6. sources
  7. examples
Noun
  • Rather than try to replicate his forerunners’ styles of success, Ternus has so far played to his own strengths—which are also those of Apple, a company that first and foremost builds beautiful products that spark productivity, creativity, and joy.
    — Andrew R. Chow, Time, 15 Oct. 2026
  • Margaret and Alice are the forerunners of Lucy and Ethel, and Shakespeare’s comedy, written expressly to entertain, gives us a sense of what an Elizabethan-era situation comedy might look like.
    — Theater Critic, Los Angeles Times, 23 July 2026
Definition of forerunners
Noun
  • On the originals side there is Jack Green (WT) from Men Behaving Badly scribe Simon Nye and starring Jack Davenport (Pirates of the Caribbean).
    — Stewart Clarke, Deadline, 6 Nov. 2026
  • Sony re-engineered the 23mm drivers with a nod toward the originals' tuning, while keeping in mind that modern listening preferences have changed.
    — Eric Zeman, PC Magazine, 5 Nov. 2026
Definition of originals
Noun
  • Throughout the region, remains of 5,500 ancestors that were displaced have been made available for return to the Tohono O’odham Nation, according to ProPublica’s NAGPRA database.
    — Ryan Devereaux, ProPublica, 2 Nov. 2026
  • What began as a personal offering to her ancestors evolved into a recognizable symbol of cultural visibility across the city.
    — Ana Gutierrez, Austin American Statesman, 31 Oct. 2026
Definition of ancestors
Noun
  • Current prototypes in pipeline NASA is actively turning these concepts into hardware.
    — Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 7 Nov. 2026
  • The plastic components were also largely molded in Hungary, with specialist costume-effects makers developing the initial prototypes.
    — Anna Cafolla, Vogue, 5 Nov. 2026
Definition of prototypes
Noun
  • The company says its indigo process uses soluble precursors that oxidize into insoluble pigment within the textile, avoiding the chemical reduction step used in conventional indigo dyeing.
    — Alexandra Harrell, Footwear News, 30 Oct. 2026
  • Should tens of thousands of American lives have been saved as a result of decisions made about fentanyl precursors in China, the implications are massive.
    — J. Travis Donahoe, STAT, 23 Oct. 2026
Definition of precursors
Noun
  • Losing research capacity weakens our ability to generate the next sources of economic growth.
    — Carole LaBonne, Washington Post, 8 Nov. 2026
  • Depending on the provider and plan, these services can monitor multiple sources of information and send alerts when something needs your attention.
    — Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 7 Nov. 2026
Definition of sources
Noun
  • The scenarios in which these tradeoffs may take place are wide-ranging, with the Anthropic researchers citing opening an auto plant, downsizing a company, and manipulating election sentiment as examples.
    — Trevor Laurence Jockims, CNBC, 8 Nov. 2026
  • Others asked about the lack of Taiwan-specific production examples illustrating copyright disputes and legal responsibilities, given the presentation’s reliance on international cases.
    — Lin Ying-Hsuan, Variety, 6 Nov. 2026
Definition of examples

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archetype
archetypes
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Cite this Entry

“Archetypes.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/archetypes. Accessed 11 Nov. 2026.

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