Modern
Pronunciation
- RP IPA: /ˈmɒd(ə)n/
- GenAm IPA: /ˈmɑdɚn/
Origin
From Middle French moderne, from Late Latin modernus; from Latin modo ("just now"), originally ablative of modus ("measure"); hence, by measure, "just now". See also mode.
Full definition of modern
Adjective
modern
- Pertaining to a current or recent time and style; not ancient.Our online interactive game is a modern approach to teaching about gum disease.Although it was built in the 1600s, the building still has a very modern look.
- 1879, Richard Jefferies, The Amateur Poacher Chapter 1, But then I had the flintlock by me for protection. ¶ There were giants in the days when that gun was made; for surely no modern mortal could have held that mass of metal steady to his shoulder.
- 2013-06-08, Obama goes troll-hunting, The solitary, lumbering trolls of Scandinavian mythology would sometimes be turned to stone by exposure to sunlight. Barack Obama is hoping that several measures announced on June 4th will have a similarly paralysing effect on their modern incarnation, the patent troll.
Synonyms
Derived terms
- modern-day
- modernise, modernize verb
- modernity noun
- postmodern (''see also prepostmodern, postpostmodern)
- premodern
Noun
modern
(plural moderns)- Someone who lives in modern times.
- 1779, Edward Capell, ‎John Collins, Notes and various readings to ShakespeareWhat the moderns could mean by their suppression of the final couplet's repeatings, cannot be conceiv'd ...
- 1956, John Albert Wilson, The Culture of Ancient Egypt (page 144)Even though we moderns can never crawl inside the skin of the ancient and think and feel as he did ... we must as historians make the attempt.