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anachronism

anachronism

14 9.8
A person or thing from a different time that seems old-fashioned
  • noun
  • /əˈnækrəˌnɪzəm/
translation icon : anacronismo
  • Many consider using a typewriter for work in today's digital age to be an anachronism.
  • become an anachronism
  • deliberate anachronisms
  • good anachronism

So atavisms are biological anachronisms that persist long after their function no longer is important.

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Examples

  • Some believe that the ability to communicate through writing is an anachronism in today's world of instant communication.

    Academic text (1991)
  • As far as political parties go, they're all anachronisms.

  • However, there is way more than a little bit of anachronism in this show.

  • Characters like you are an anachronism.

  • I am a walking anachronism.

  • The Castle represents every anachronism that needs to be destroyed if progress is to be made.

    Fiction book (1991)
  • The very idea of a 'Jewish state' is an anachronism.

    Academic text (2008)
  • The notion that self-reliance is an anachronism needs to be examined in historical perspective.

    Academic text (2000)
  • Their nostalgia is little more than an anachronism that provides no roadmap for the future.

    Blog text (20)
  • - I'm an anachronism.

Synonyms

fossil
vsanachronism
  • Offensive
65 7.6

Someone whose habits or style are old-fashioned

is broader, applying to things or people that are out of time
throwback
vsanachronism
4 7.9

Having features like things from an earlier time

is about being out of place in time rather than mere resemblance
relic of the past
vsanachronism
2 7.2

An object, custom, or idea from long ago that seems out of date

focuses on being misplaced in time rather than simply surviving from before
dino
vsanachronism
  • Informal
1 8.6

An old-fashioned person or thing that is out of date

is a neutral concept about temporal misplacement, not just casual insult
archaism
vsanachronism
  • Literature
1 9.9

An old-fashioned word, phrase, or style no longer used in everyday speech

applies across people or things, not only to language use
real dinosaur
vsanachronism
  • Offensive
7.9

A person or thing that is very old-fashioned and not useful today

highlights being out of place in time rather than just being old

Antonyms

28 4.2

Happening at the same time as someone or something else

18 5.8

A condition of life now that shows new ideas, styles, or technology

How Outdated

relic
92 5.3
anachronism
14 9.8

Surface Forms

anachronism singular
anachronisms plural

Morphology

anachronism = anachronous (opaque) = ana + chron + ism

Forming a noun from the adjective with '-ism' is a regular and transparent morphological step.

Etymology

Anachronism comes from the Greek parts ana- meaning 'against' or 'back' and chronos meaning 'time'. So an anachronism is something 'out of time' or in the wrong period, like a wristwatch in ancient Rome.