Synonyms of classical

classical

adjective

ˈkla-si-kəl 

1

as in traditional

based on customs usually handed down from a previous generation

the classical preparation of a ham for Easter

Synonyms & Similar Words

• traditional
• customary
• conventional
• usual
• historical
• old
• prescriptive
• authentic
• historic
• common
• ancient
• orthodox
• ancestral
• established
• fixed
• old-time
• habitual
• old-world
• timeless
• hoary
• venerable
• aged
• age-old
• immemorial
• antediluvian
• ageless
• dateless

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• modern
• contemporary
• nontraditional
• unconventional
• new
• current
• untraditional
• present-day
• modernized
• updated
• up-to-date
• new age
• latest
• modernistic
• original
• futuristic
• uncustomary
• high-tech
• progressive
• state-of-the-art
• ultramodern
• hot
• unusual
• newfangled
• revolutionary
• red-hot
• unorthodox
• mod
• unprecedented
• nonconformist
• supermodern
• new-fashioned
• space-age
• nonorthodox

2

as in authoritative

being the most accurate and apparently thorough

a writer celebrated for his classical profiles of eminent Victorians

Synonyms & Similar Words

• authoritative
• classic
• definitive
• comprehensive
• magisterial
• accurate
• official
• conclusive
• decisive
• correct
• approved
• complete
• sanctioned
• exhaustive
• thorough

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of classical

His depth of talent and classical music knowledge, honed over a lifetime, is a joy to celebrate with this new album. — Pat Saperstein, Variety, 10 July 2026

Life Is a Dream isn’t Hopkins’s first foray into classical music. — Fran Hoepfner, Vulture, 10 July 2026

Cinema is the great compensatory art, the one that artistic temperaments frustrated by the practice of a classical art form turn to when there’s no other outlet left. — Richard Brody, New Yorker, 9 July 2026

Also featured are classical, jazz, folk, opera, chamber, big-band and bluegrass performances. — Randy McMullen, Mercury News, 9 July 2026