Definitions for ancient
ˈeɪn ʃəntan·cient

Princeton's WordNet(4.07 / 15 votes)Rate this definition:

1. ancient, antediluvian(noun)

   a very old person

2. ancient(adj)

   a person who lived in ancient times

3. ancient(adj)

   belonging to times long past especially of the historical period before the fall of the Western Roman Empire

   "ancient history"; "ancient civilizations such as those of the Etruscans and Sumerians"; "ancient Greece"

4. ancient(adj)

   very old

   "an ancient mariner"

Wiktionary(2.57 / 7 votes)Rate this definition:

1. ancient(Noun)

   A person who is very old or who lived in ancient times.

   Etymology: From auncyen, from ancien, from root *anteanus, from ante. Compare antique.

2. ancient(Noun)

   A flag, banner, standard or ensign.

   Etymology: From auncyen, from ancien, from root *anteanus, from ante. Compare antique.

3. ancient(Adjective)

   Having lasted from a remote period; having been of long duration; of great age; very old.

   Etymology: From auncyen, from ancien, from root *anteanus, from ante. Compare antique.

4. ancient(Adjective)

   Existent or occurring in time long past, usually in remote ages; belonging to or associated with antiquity; old, as opposed to modern.

   Etymology: From auncyen, from ancien, from root *anteanus, from ante. Compare antique.

Webster Dictionary(2.25 / 4 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Ancient(adj)

   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

   Etymology: [Corrupted from ensign.]

2. Ancient(adj)

   old; that has been of long duration; of long standing; of great age; as, an ancient forest; an ancient castle

   Etymology: [Corrupted from ensign.]

3. Ancient(adj)

   known for a long time, or from early times; -- opposed to recent or new; as, the ancient continent

   Etymology: [Corrupted from ensign.]

4. Ancient(adj)

   dignified, like an aged man; magisterial; venerable

   Etymology: [Corrupted from ensign.]

5. Ancient(adj)

   experienced; versed

   Etymology: [Corrupted from ensign.]

6. Ancient(adj)

   former; sometime

   Etymology: [Corrupted from ensign.]

7. Ancient(noun)

   those who lived in former ages, as opposed to the moderns

   Etymology: [Corrupted from ensign.]

8. Ancient(noun)

   an aged man; a patriarch. Hence: A governor; a ruler; a person of influence

   Etymology: [Corrupted from ensign.]

9. Ancient(noun)

   a senior; an elder; a predecessor

   Etymology: [Corrupted from ensign.]

10. Ancient(noun)

    one of the senior members of the Inns of Court or of Chancery

    Etymology: [Corrupted from ensign.]

11. Ancient(noun)

    an ensign or flag

    Etymology: [Corrupted from ensign.]

12. Ancient(noun)

    the bearer of a flag; an ensign

    Etymology: [Corrupted from ensign.]

Freebase(3.60 / 5 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Ancient

   The Ancients are a humanoid race in the fictional Stargate universe. They are called "Ancients" in the Milky Way, but are also known as Lanteans or Ancestors in the Pegasus galaxy and as the Alterans in their home galaxy, and they sometimes call themselves Anquietas in their language. In the series mythology, they are one of the most advanced races known to have existed; they evolved millions of years before the present day and reached their level of technology long before humanity evolved on Earth. They are best known as the builders of the Stargates, the giant ring-shaped portals commonly used by Earth-based humans to travel and explore the Milky Way and Pegasus galaxies. The Ancients have become an important race in all three Stargate series. They belong to the same race as the Ori, the main antagonists in Stargate SG-1 since the show's ninth season, and have played a large role in the series' many story arcs. In Stargate Atlantis, the Ancients built Atlantis, the show's main setting, and are responsible for the emergence of the show's two main villain races: the Wraith and the Asurans. In Stargate Universe they are the ones that have built and launched the ship Destiny on its journey.

Chambers 20th Century Dictionary(1.00 / 1 vote)Rate this definition:

1. Ancient

   ān′shent, adj. old: belonging to former times, specifically, of times prior to the downfall of the western Roman empire (476 A.D.): of great age or duration: of past times in a general sense: venerable: antique, old-fashioned.—n. an aged man, a patriarch: a superior in age or dignity.—adv. An′ciently.—ns. An′cientness; An′cientry, ancientness, seniority: ancestry: dignity of birth: (Shak.) old people.—n.pl. An′cients, those who lived in remote times, esp. the Greeks and Romans of classical times: (B.) elders.—The Ancient of days, a title in the Holy Scriptures for the Almighty, applied by Byron to Athens. [Fr. ancien—Low L. antianus, old—L. ante, before. See Antique.]

2. Ancient

   ān′shent, n. (obs.) a flag or its bearer: an ensign. [Corr. of Fr. enseigne. See Ensign.]

Dictionary of Nautical Terms(1.00 / 1 vote)Rate this definition:

1. ancient

   A term formerly used for the colours and their bearer, as ensign is now. Shakspeare's Nym was only a corporal, but Pistol was an ancient.

Military Dictionary and Gazetteer(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. ancient

   A term formerly used to express the grand ensign or standard of an army.

Suggested Resources(5.00 / 1 vote)Rate this definition:

1. ancient

   Song lyrics by ancient -- Explore a large variety of song lyrics performed by ancient on the Lyrics.com website.

Etymology and Origins(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Ancient

   Iago is described as Othello’s “ancient.” Even in Shakespeare’s day this word was a corruption of ensign, or standard-bearer.

British National Corpus

1. Spoken Corpus Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'ancient' in Spoken Corpus Frequency: #2009

2. Adjectives Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'ancient' in Adjectives Frequency: #272

Anagrams for ancient »

1. catenin

How to pronounce ancient?

1. 

   Alex

   US English

   

   Daniel

   British

   

   Karen

   Australian

   

   Veena

   Indian

How to say ancient in sign language?

Numerology

1. Chaldean Numerology

   The numerical value of ancient in Chaldean Numerology is: 6

2. Pythagorean Numerology

   The numerical value of ancient in Pythagorean Numerology is: 3

Examples of ancient in a Sentence

1. Stefaan Poortman:

   Sites all over the world are under threat at any given moment. Apart from the monuments and ancient cities in the Middle East, I would say historic districts of major cities in Asia face the highest threat due to the unchecked sprawl and development, tourism is not regulated well enough and the massive influx is putting a strain on sites all over the world. The most well-known sites like Angkor or Machu Picchu are really swamped with tourism. Not only does it affect the sites but at a certain point, if unchecked, tourism can negatively impact the quality of life for local communities as well.

2. Mohammed Reza Pahlavi:

   My main mistake was to have made an ancient people advance by forced marches toward independence, health, culture, affluence, comfort.

3. Lucy Skinner:

   I have been working on some experimental tanning to create replicas of the individual scales, the ancient methods used for making this type of leather are not really well understood. Materials will invariably change chemically and physically after being buried for thousands of years, so there are a lot of complicated scientific processes involved in finding these things out.

4. Deodatta V. Shenai-Khatkhate:

   Today I am pleased to quote this Sanskrit Prayer from Upanishad - one of the most ancient and powerful prayer in my view. Here it is in Sanskrit, followed by in English script, and then the meaning.: ॐ असतो मा सद्गमय । तमसो मा ज्योतिर्गमय । मृत्योर्मा अमृतं गमय । ॐ

5. Hannah Arendt:

   No cause is left but the most ancient of all, the one, in fact, that from the beginning of our history has determined the very existence of politics, the cause of freedom versus tyranny.

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