Foundation level · Year 4 · free
ancient
adjective · Say it: AYN-shunt
What it means
Foundationvery, very old, from a time long ago in history
On our school trip, we saw an ancient Roman wall in the middle of the city.
Similar and opposite words
Synonyms (similar meaning)
- antique
- old
- prehistoric
Antonyms (opposite meaning)
- modern
- new
- recent
More examples
- Grandad showed me an ancient coin that was found buried in a farmer's field.
Where the word comes from
From Old French 'ancien', based on Latin 'ante', meaning 'before'.
Try a quick question
One question about “ancient”, the way 11+ papers ask it (Foundation level).