Dictionary
Thesaurus
Encyclopedia
Translator
Web
Related Searches
Nearby Words

Dark Ages

 - 4 dictionary results

Dark Ages

 
Use Dark Ages in a Sentence
–noun
1. the period in European history from about a.d. 476 to about 1000.
2. the whole of the Middle Ages, from about a.d. 476 to the Renaissance.
3. (often lowercase) a period or stage marked by repressiveness, a lack of enlightenment or advanced knowledge, etc.
Origin:
1720–30
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To Dark Ages
Dark Age   (därk)   
n.  

  1. also dark age

    1. An era of ignorance, superstition, or social chaos or repression. Often used in the plural: a novel depicting the dark ages in the aftermath of a global war.

    2. The early or crude stage in the history or development of something. Often used in the plural: back in the dark ages of radio technology.

    3. The period in Europe from the fall of Rome in the fifth century A.D. to the restoration of relative political stability around the year 1000; the early part of the Middle Ages.

    4. The entire Middle Ages, especially when viewed as a troubled period marked by the loss of classical learning. No longer in use by historians.

  2. Dark Ages

    1. The period in Europe from the fall of Rome in the fifth century A.D. to the restoration of relative political stability around the year 1000; the early part of the Middle Ages.

    2. The entire Middle Ages, especially when viewed as a troubled period marked by the loss of classical learning. No longer in use by historians.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Cultural Dictionary

Dark Ages

A term sometimes applied to the early Middle Ages, the first few centuries after the Fall of Rome. The term suggests prevailing ignorance and barbarism, but there were forces for culture and enlightenment throughout the period.

The American Heritage® New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Encyclopedia

Dark Ages

the early medieval period of western European history. Specifically, the term refers to the time (476-800) when there was no Roman (or Holy Roman) emperor in the West; or, more generally, to the period between about 500 and 1000, which was marked by frequent warfare and a virtual disappearance of urban life. It is now rarely used by historians because of the value judgment it implies. Though sometimes taken to derive its meaning from the fact that little was then known about the period, the term's more usual and pejorative sense is of a period of intellectual darkness and barbarity. See Middle Ages.

Learn more about Dark Ages with a free trial on Britannica.com.

Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
Cite This Source
Search another word or see Dark Ages on Thesaurus | Reference
FacebookTwitterFollow us:
Partner Sites:
Ask AnswersEviteExpediaHotelsHotwireLife123LiveDailyMy Way