Synonyms of has-been

has-been

noun

ˈhaz-ˌbin 

as in relic

one that has passed the peak of effectiveness or popularity

now a has-been, the actor's been reduced to appearing on a third-rate reality show

Synonyms & Similar Words

• relic
• dinosaur
• fogy
• fossil
• old-timer
• troglodyte
• dodo
• throwback
• mossback
• stick-in-the-mud
• fuddy-duddy
• stodge

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• comer
• rising star
• up-and-comer

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of has-been

In the Seventies, he was mocked as a Vegas has-been in a jumpsuit; in the Eighties, as a cultural colonizer. — Rob Sheffield, Rolling Stone, 19 Feb. 2026

Ken Blake Brea Sorry to see Jerry Neuheisel leave UCLA to join traitor and coaching has-been Chip Kelly at Northwestern. — Los Angeles Times, 3 Jan. 2026

All this success begs the legitimate question of how the once-struggling reality show for has-been celebrities reinvented itself and became a pop-cultural phenomenon that any public figure would be lucky to utilize as their re-introduction into the zeitgeist. — Mckinley Franklin, HollywoodReporter, 25 Nov. 2025

In other words, the vainly hopeful Larry is about to endure twin humiliations, leaving him feeling bumped out of his life and into the past—a has-been, instantly old. — Richard Brody, New Yorker, 10 Oct. 2025

DiCaprio makes a great, vital has-been, squinting at the horrors around him in disbelief, but mostly, driven by the need to protect his child. — Stephanie Zacharek, Time, 18 Sep. 2025

And as alcoholic has-been Morris, Matthau was fantastically slovenly and cynical, an anti–role model for the ages. — Tim Grierson, Vulture, 25 July 2025