vestiges

plural of vestige
1
as in relics
a tiny often physical indication of something lost or vanished a few strange words carved on a tree were the only vestige of the lost colony of Roanoke

Synonyms & Similar Words

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2
as in footsteps
the mark or impression made by a foot the fossilized vestige of a dinosaur that traversed that muddy landscape millions of years ago

Synonyms & Similar Words

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 vestiges The vestiges of his fading memory flash by with a haunting plainness, the melancholy of all this Americana and the sadness of a mind ravaged by time strike the viewer plainly at the end of this maximalist piece of life-writing. — Stephanie Wambugu, Vulture, 12 Oct. 2026 Then the pandemic hit, and an outdoor pint became one of the last vestiges of social life. — Vanda Mayer, New Yorker, 6 Oct. 2026 The only vestiges of social order are a vigilante police force and the power company. — Los Angeles Times, 29 Sep. 2026 The Venetians came and colonized 500 years ago, and many vestiges of our Venetian past are still visible, not just in the architecture and in our food. — Shannon McMahon, Condé Nast Traveler, 10 Sep. 2026 All that can be seen of the building now is the vestiges of its foundations. — Simone McCarthy, CNN Money, 6 Sep. 2026 These beautiful, intrepid, witty and irrepressible young women and men are living witnesses to the destruction of the last vestiges of the dream of freedom of expression in Russia. — Scott Roxborough, HollywoodReporter, 2 Sep. 2026 As with many vestiges of the past, this myth is both a blessing and a curse. — Literary Hub, 2 Sep. 2026 Rafael Devers and Jung Hoo Lee were the only vestiges from the group that started behind Webb on opening day. — Andrew Baggarly, New York Times, 16 Aug. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for vestiges
Noun
  • The presentation positioned Zelda products almost as relics representing an ancient myth passed down through history.
    — Jordan Minor, PC Magazine, 5 Oct. 2026
  • Behind the reception desk, a wall of 109 wooden pigeonholes doubles as an art installation, with some compartments displaying replicas of the property's original room keys and others filled with nautical relics reflecting Naples's coastal allure.
    — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 29 Sep. 2026
Noun
  • The new Baywatch finds wild-child legacy character Hobie Buchannon (Stephen Amell) serving as a Baywatch Captain, following in his legendary father Mitch’s footsteps.
    — Armando Tinoco, Deadline, 13 Oct. 2026
  • Robinson is now a sophomore at that same school, hoping to follow in his footsteps.
    — Jamal Goss, CBS News, 13 Oct. 2026
Noun
  • The words cut sharply into the jumble of to-do lists, fantasies, snippets of possible writing, worry, and leftover traces of postpartum depression that constituted my mind in the early months of 1993.
    — Via Scribner, Literary Hub, 9 Oct. 2026
  • It is considered highly likely that gold jewelry purchased in Great Britain in the mid- to late 1980s contained traces of the ingots stolen from the Brink’s-Mat warehouse.
    — Frannie Comstock, Encyclopedia Britannica, 9 Oct. 2026
Noun
  • The new plan delineates rough land-use areas, not specific buildings or footprints.
    — Mark Dee, Idaho Statesman, 8 Oct. 2026
  • The moon is a historical landmark — a celestial body continually peppered with robotic landers shot from our home planet, as well as human footprints planted there by a dozen visiting moonwalkers from 1969 to 1972.
    — Leonard David, Space.com, 7 Oct. 2026
Noun
  • Numerous tornado warnings were also issued for parts of South Carolina and Georgia as the remnants of Isaias move northward and help create supercells of rain and unstable air, according to National Weather Service alerts and forecasts.
    — Erika Angulo, NBC news, 11 Oct. 2026
  • The region is still at risk of flash floods as the storm's remnants were expected to continue dumping rain and bringing wind gusts through the weekend, the weather service said, adding that high surf would continue battering coastal communities.
    — Adrian Florido, NPR, 11 Oct. 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Vestiges.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/vestiges. Accessed 16 Oct. 2026.

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