1
2
as in antique
something belonging to or surviving from an earlier period in my grandparents' attic are many "groovy" relics from the 1960s

Synonyms & Similar Words

3
as in dinosaur
one that has passed the peak of effectiveness or popularity his courtly manners marked him as a relic of a more refined and formal era

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

4
as in remains
relics plural a dead body though it is believed that missionary died in New Guinea, his relics have never been found

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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 relic But lately, certain relics—tallow, bay rum, horn combs—have crept back in. Jennifer Noyes, Air Mail, 4 Oct. 2025 Then hop over to the Buddha Tooth Relic Temple, which gets its name from the sacred relic on the temple grounds, the left canine of Buddha. Elizabeth See, AFAR Media, 2 Oct. 2025 Significance The relics of Saint Therese traveled from France to be in the United States. Natalie Davies, Freep.com, 1 Oct. 2025 A number of startups are actively pursuing ways to extract the most dangerous orbital objects—defunct rocket stages, dead satellites, space collision fragment clouds, and space-race relics. IEEE Spectrum, 30 Sep. 2025 See All Example Sentences for relic
Recent Examples of Synonyms for relic
Noun
  • This isn’t the first time in recent years that the University of Münster has facilitated the return of historical artifacts to Greece.
    Toria Sheffield, PEOPLE, 18 Oct. 2025
  • The landowner, who happened to be an avid collector of Native American artifacts, retrieved the skull and promptly reported the find to Chief Deputy Dan Becker on June 2, 2025.
    Katie Wiseman, IndyStar, 17 Oct. 2025
Noun
  • While the true worth of the gemstones remains unclear, the discovery has resonated with the broader community of thrift and antique enthusiasts who frequent r/goodwill_finds, a subreddit dedicated to surprising secondhand discoveries.
    Melissa Fleur Afshar, MSNBC Newsweek, 13 Oct. 2025
  • Uniacke began her career restoring furniture and antiques, and is obsessive about the weight, feel and function of objects.
    Samantha Conti, Footwear News, 11 Oct. 2025
Noun
  • But this may be the first tech revolution that doesn’t vaporize the dinosaurs, the way mobile killed Nokia and threatened Microsoft, but grafts their DNA onto something new.
    Liz Hoffman, semafor.com, 14 Oct. 2025
  • Same for the life-size dinosaur that took over Manhattan ahead of the release of Jurassic World Rebirth.
    Alex Weprin, HollywoodReporter, 13 Oct. 2025
Noun
  • Even trace concentrations can affect algae and fish, creating ripple effects across ecosystems.
    Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 15 Oct. 2025
  • His warning comes just days after Beijing unveiled sweeping new export controls that would require companies worldwide to seek Chinese approval before shipping thousands of products containing even trace amounts of rare earths.
    Eva Roytburg, Fortune, 13 Oct. 2025
Noun
  • 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
Noun
  • Most historians believe Gunness would first poison her suitors, then finish them with an ax or by bludgeoning — afterward dismembering the corpses and burying what remained.
    Christina Coulter, PEOPLE, 11 Oct. 2025
  • Eight corpses were on the floor of kitchen dry storage.
    David J. Neal, Miami Herald, 11 Oct. 2025
Noun
  • And, major flooding occurred at two locations in Alaska as the remnants of Typhoon Halong arrived.
    Dinah Voyles Pulver, USA Today, 11 Oct. 2025
  • Breakker dragged Reigns’ carcass out of the remnants from the table to help set up Reed for the Tsunami.
    Ryan Gaydos, FOXNews.com, 11 Oct. 2025
Noun
  • Breakker dragged Reigns’ carcass out of the remnants from the table to help set up Reed for the Tsunami.
    Ryan Gaydos, FOXNews.com, 11 Oct. 2025
  • The carcass was gone, the grass and weeds were licked clean of blood, and the knife was buried under debris.
    Marguerite Reiss, Outdoor Life, 9 Oct. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Relic.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/relic. Accessed 19 Oct. 2025.

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