Definition of "antiquity"

antiquity

/ænˈtɪk.wɪ.ti/

noun
countable and uncountable, plural antiquities
1. Ancient times; faraway history; former ages
2. The people of ancient times.
  Quotations
  That such pillars were raised by Seth all antiquity has avowed.
  1614, Walter Ralegh [i.e., Walter Raleigh], The Historie of the World […], London: […] William Stansby for Walter Burre, […], (please specify |book=1 to 5)
3. (obsolete) An old gentleman.
  Quotations
  You are a shrewd antiquity, neighbor Clench.
  1633 (first performance), Ben Jonson, “A Tale of a Tub. A Comedy […]”, in The Works of Ben Jonson, […] (Third Folio), London: […] Thomas Hodgkin, for H[enry] Herringman, E. Brewster, T. Bassett, R[ichard] Chiswell, M. Wotton, G. Conyers, published 1692, (please specify the act number in uppercase Roman numerals, and the scene number in lowercase Roman numerals)
4. (history) The historical period preceding the Middle Ages (c. 500-1500), primarily relating to European history.
5. (often constructed as an uncountable plural) A relic or monument of ancient times, such as a coin, a statue, etc.; an ancient institution.
6. The state of being ancient or of ancient lineage.
  Quotations
  He was thinking; but the glory of the song, the swell from the great organ, the clustered lights, […] , the height and vastness of this noble fane, its antiquity and its strength—all these things seemed to have their part as causes of the thrilling emotion that accompanied his thoughts.
  1918, W[illiam] B[abington] Maxwell, chapter V, in The Mirror and the Lamp, Indianapolis, Ind.: The Bobbs-Merrill Company

Definition of "antiquity"

antiquity

noun

Quotations

Quotations

Quotations