of or pertaining to present and recent time; not ancient or remote: modern city life.
2.
characteristic of present and recent time; contemporary; not antiquated or obsolete: modern viewpoints.
3.
of or pertaining to the historical period following the Middle Ages: modern European history.
4.
of, pertaining to, or characteristic of contemporary styles of art, literature, music, etc., that reject traditionally accepted or sanctioned forms and emphasize individual experimentation and sensibility.
Typography. noting or descriptive of a font of numerals in which the body aligns on the baseline, as 1234567890. Compare old style(def. 3).
–noun
7.
a person of modern times.
8.
a person whose views and tastes are modern.
9.
Printing. a type style differentiated from old style by heavy vertical strokes and straight serifs.
[Origin: 1490–1500; < MF moderne < LL modernus, equiv. to L mod(o), mod(ō) lately, just now (orig. abl. sing. of modusmode1) + -ernus adj. suffix of time]
—Related forms
mod·ern·ly, adverb
mod·ern·ness, noun
—Synonyms 1.Modern,recent,late apply to that which is near to or characteristic of the present as contrasted with any other time. Modern is applied to those things that exist in the present age, esp. in contrast to those of a former age or an age long past; hence the word sometimes has the connotation of up-to-date and, thus, good: modern ideas. That which is recent is separated from the present or the time of action by only a short interval; it is new, fresh, and novel: recent developments. Late may mean nearest to the present moment: the late reports on the battle.
Of or relating to recent times or the present: modern history.
Characteristic or expressive of recent times or the present; contemporary or up-to-date: a modern lifestyle; a modern way of thinking.
Of or relating to a recently developed or advanced style, technique, or technology: modern art; modern medicine.
Avant-garde; experimental.
Of or relating to a recently developed or advanced style, technique, or technology: modern art; modern medicine.
Avant-garde; experimental.
often ModernLinguistics Of, relating to, or being a living language or group of languages: Modern Italian; Modern Romance languages.
n.
One who lives in modern times.
One who has modern ideas, standards, or beliefs.
Printing Any of a variety of typefaces characterized by strongly contrasted heavy and thin parts.
[French moderne, from Old French, from Late Latin modernus, from Latin modo, in a certain manner, just now, from modō, ablative of modus, manner; see med- in Indo-European roots.]
mod'ern·ly adv., mod'ern·ness n.
Word History: The word modern, first recorded in 1585 in the sense "of present or recent times," has traveled through the centuries designating things that inevitably must become old-fashioned as the word itself goes on to the next modern thing. We have now invented the word postmodern, as if we could finally fix modern in time, but even postmodern (first recorded in 1949) will seem fusty in the end, perhaps sooner than modern will. Going back to Late Latin modernus, "modern," which is derived from Latin modo in the sense "just now," the English word modern (first recorded at the beginning of the 16th century) was not originally concerned with anything that could later be considered old-fashioned. It simply meant "being at this time, now existing," an obsolete sense today. In the later 16th century, however, we begin to see the word contrasted with the word ancient and also used of technology in a way that is clearly related to our own modern way of using the word. Modern was being applied specifically to what pertained to present times and also to what was new and not old-fashioned. Thus in the 19th and 20th centuries the word could be used to designate a movement in art, modernism, which is now being followed by postmodernism.
"of or pertaining to present or recent times," 1500, from M.Fr. moderne, from L.L. modernus "modern," from L. modo "just now, in a (certain) manner," from modo "to the measure," abl. of modus "manner, measure" (see mode (1)). In Shakespeare, often with a sense of "every-day, ordinary, commonplace." Slang abbreviation mod first attested 1960. Modern art is from 1849; modern dance first attested 1912; first record of modern jazz is from 1955. Modern conveniences first recorded 1926. Modernize is from 1748 (implied in modernized).
belonging to the modern era; since the Middle Ages; "modern art"; "modern furniture"; "modern history"; "totem poles are modern rather than prehistoric" [ant: nonmodern]
2.
relating to a recently developed fashion or style; "their offices are in a modern skyscraper"; "tables in modernistic designs"; [syn: mod]
3.
characteristic of present-day art and music and literature and architecture
4.
ahead of the times; "the advanced teaching methods"; "had advanced views on the subject"; "a forward-looking corporation"; "is British industry innovative enough?" [syn: advanced]
5.
used of a living language; being the current stage in its development; "Modern English"; "New Hebrew is Israeli Hebrew"
noun
1.
a contemporary person
2.
a typeface (based on an 18th century design by Gianbattista Bodoni) distinguished by regular shape and hairline serifs and heavy downstrokes [ant: old style]
An"cient\, a. [OE. auncien, F. ancien, LL. antianus, fr. L. ante before. See Ante-, pref.]1. Old; that happened or existed in former times, usually at a great distance of time; belonging to times long past; specifically applied to the times before the fall of the Roman empire; -- opposed to modern; as, ancient authors, literature, history; ancient days. Witness those ancient empires of the earth. --Milton. Gildas Albanius . . . much ancienter than his namesake surnamed the Wise. --Fuller. 2. Old; that has been of long duration; of long standing; of great age; as, an ancient forest; an ancient castle. "Our ancient bickerings." --Shak. Remove not the ancient landmarks, which thy fathers have set. --Prov. xxii. 28. An ancient man, strangely habited, asked for quarters. --Scott. 3. Known for a long time, or from early times; -- opposed to recent or new; as, the ancient continent. A friend, perhaps, or an ancient acquaintance. --Barrow. 4. Dignified, like an aged man; magisterial; venerable. [Archaic] He wrought but some few hours of the day, and then would he seem very grave and ancient. --Holland. 5. Experienced; versed. [Obs.] Though [he] was the youngest brother, yet he was the most ancient in the business of the realm. --Berners. 6. Former; sometime. [Obs.] They mourned their ancient leader lost. --Pope. Ancient demesne (Eng. Law), a tenure by which all manors belonging to the crown, in the reign of William the Conqueror, were held. The numbers, names, etc., of these were all entered in a book called Domesday Book. Ancient lights (Law), windows and other openings which have been enjoined without molestation for more than twenty years. In England, and in some of the United States, they acquire a prescriptive right. Syn: Old; primitive; pristine; antique; antiquated; old-fashioned; obsolete. Usage: Ancient, Antiquated, Obsolete, Antique, Antic, Old. -- Ancient is opposed to modern, and has antiquity; as, an ancient family, ancient landmarks, ancient institutions, systems of thought, etc. Antiquated describes that which has gone out of use or fashion; as, antiquated furniture, antiquated laws, rules, etc. Obsolete is commonly used, instead of antiquated, in reference to language, customs, etc.; as, an obsolete word or phrase, an obsolete expression. Antique is applied, in present usage, either to that which has come down from the ancients; as, an antique cameo, bust, etc.; or to that which is made to imitate some ancient work of art; as, an antique temple. In the days of Shakespeare, antique was often used for ancient; as, "an antique song," "an antique Roman;" and hence, from singularity often attached to what is ancient, it was used in the sense of grotesque; as, "an oak whose antique root peeps out; " and hence came our present word antic, denoting grotesque or ridiculous. We usually apply both ancient and old to things subject to gradual decay. We say, an old man, an ancient record; but never, the old stars, an old river or mountain. In general, however, ancient is opposed to modern, and old to new, fresh, or recent. When we speak of a thing that existed formerly, which has ceased to exist, we commonly use ancient; as, ancient republics, ancient heroes; and not old republics, old heroes. But when the thing which began or existed in former times is still in existence, we use either ancient or old; as, ancient statues or paintings, or old statues or paintings; ancient authors, or old authors, meaning books.
Mod"ern\, a. [F. moderne, L. modernus; akin to modo just now, orig. abl. of modus measure; hence, by measure, just now. See Mode.]1. Of or pertaining to the present time, or time not long past; late; not ancient or remote in past time; of recent period; as, modern days, ages, or time; modern authors; modern fashions; modern taste; modern practice. --Bacon. 2. New and common; trite; commonplace. [Obs.] We have our philosophical persons, to make modern and familiar, things supernatural and causeless. --Shak. Modern English. See the Note under English.
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