antebellum
6
9.9
- adjective
- /ˌæntəˈbɛləm/
- US
:
antebellum
- Antebellum values were at the core of this peace.
- antebellum South
- antebellum period
- antebellum era
Examples
-
In telling Vincent's tale, Graham also provides us with keen insight into the fast-moving world of antebellum professionals.
Academic text (2011) -
We have tended to look at antebellum governance through the eyes of white citizens.
Academic text (2017) -
It's a remarkable example of antebellum architecture.
-
Local government in the antebellum South was thus a subject of dispute.
Academic text (2017) -
King and others saw a clear break between their antebellum and postbellum lives.
Academic text (2008) -
The focus on the developing urban press has excluded a broader view of the antebellum newspaper press.
Academic text (1991) -
Only a handful of the town's antebellum residents rebuilt their homes and farms.
Academic text (2008) -
This is one of our loveliest antebellum mansions in the area.
-
Vincent's estate offers a snapshot of the life of a young professional in antebellum Georgia.
Academic text (2011) -
It's a remarkable example of antebellum architecture.
Synonyms
10
4.3
From the time before a war, often before World War I or II
Antonyms
Compounds
A style of large southern United States houses before the Civil War with big columns and decorative details
Surface Forms
Morphology
antebellum = ante + bellum
Although the prefix 'ante' suggests 'before', 'bellum' is not a standalone English word, so the meaning 'before the war' is not transparently derivable for an average learner from English component words.
Etymology
Antebellum comes from Latin parts ante- and bellum, which mean 'before' and 'war'. So antebellum literally means 'before the war' and is used for the time just before a war, especially the period before the American Civil War, and you can see the same 'war' root in the common word rebellion.