different between ancient vs antediluvian

English

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?e?n.(t)??nt/

Etymology 1

From Middle English auncyen, borrowed from Old French ancien (“old”), from Vulgar Latin root *anteanus, from Latin ante (“before”). Compare antique.

Alternative forms

• anchient, aunchient, auncient, auntient, awncient, awntient (obsolete)
• antient (obsolete outside freemasonry)

Adjective

ancient (comparative ancienter or more ancient, superlative ancientest or most ancient)

1. Having lasted from a remote period; having been of long duration; of great age, very old.
2. Existent or occurring in time long past, usually in remote ages; belonging to or associated with antiquity; old, as opposed to modern.
3. (historical) Relating to antiquity as a primarily European historical period; the time before the Middle Ages.
4. (obsolete) Experienced; versed.
   • 1550, Thomas Cranmer, A Defence of the True and Catholick Doctrine of the Sacrament of the Body and Blood of our Saviour Christ; with a Confutation of sundry Errors concerning the same, grounded and stablished upon God's Holy Word, and approved by the consent of the most ancient Doc. tors of the Church

     approved by the consent of the moste ancient doctors of the Churche [part of the book title]

5. (obsolete) Former; sometime.

Synonyms

• (very old): aged, eldern, hoary; see also Thesaurus:old

Antonyms

• modern

Derived terms

Related terms

Translations

Noun

ancient (plural ancients)

1. A person who is very old.
2. A person who lived in ancient times.
3. (Britain, law) One of the senior members of the Inns of Court or of Chancery.
4. (obsolete) A senior; an elder; a predecessor.
   • 1594, Richard Hooker, Of the Lawes of Ecclesiastical Politie

     Junius and Andronicus […] in Christianity […] were his ancients.

Synonyms

• (person who is very old): geriatric, oldster, senior citizen; see also Thesaurus:old person
• (person who lived in ancient times): antique
• (predecessor): antecessor, forerunner; see also Thesaurus:predecessor

Etymology 2

Corruption of ensign.

Noun

ancient (plural ancients)

1. (heraldry, archaic) A flag, banner, standard or ensign.
   • 1719, Daniel Defoe, Robinson Crusoe

     I got all things ready as he had directed, and waited the next morning with the boat washed clean, her ancient and pendants out, and everything to accommodate his guests..

2. (obsolete, rare) the bearer of a flag; ensign

References

• The Manual of Heraldry, Fifth Edition, by Anonymous, London, 1862, online at [2]
• ancient in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.
• ancient in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.
• ancient at OneLook Dictionary Search

Anagrams

• cantine, catenin, enactin

English

Etymology

From ante- (“before”) +? Latin d?luvium (“flood”) +? -an; in reference to the story of Noah’s Ark (Genesis 6–9), an early episode in the Bible.

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /?ant?d??lu?v??n/

Adjective

antediluvian (comparative more antediluvian, superlative most antediluvian)

1. Ancient or antiquated.

   Synonyms: antediluvial, old, prehistoric; see also Thesaurus:old

2. Extremely dated.

   Synonyms: dated, old-fashioned; see also Thesaurus:obsolete
3. Pertaining or belonging to the time period prior to a great or destructive flood or deluge.

   Synonym: preflood

4. (biblical) Pertaining or belonging to the time prior to Noah's Flood.

   Synonym: antediluvial

   Coordinate term: prelapsarian

Translations

Noun

antediluvian (plural antediluvians)

1. One who lived prior to Noah's Flood.

Related terms

• deluge
• diluvial

Further reading

• antediluvian on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
• “antediluvian”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–present.

Romanian

Etymology

From French antédiluvien

Noun

antediluvian n (plural antediluvieni)

1. antediluvian

Declension