Standard Lemma guide

modern

adj · noun · 10 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • Received-Pronunciation: /ˈmɒd.ən/
  • Received-Pronunciation: [ˈmɒd.n̩]
  • Received-Pronunciation: mŏdʹərn
  • Atlantic-Canada, General-American: /ˈmɑ.dɚn/
  • California: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • Canada, dialectal: /ˈmɒd.ɚn/ of the US
  • Australian: /ˈmɔd.ən/
  • Australian: [ˈmɔd.n̩]
  • New-Zealand: /ˈmɒd.ən/
  • New-Zealand: [ˈmɔ̟d.n̩]
  • rhymes with -ɒdə(ɹ)n
  • CMU ARPABET: M AA1 D ER0 N Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

adj

Meaning 1

Pertaining to a current or recent time and style; not ancient.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Examples

  • 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.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

adj

Meaning 2

Pertaining to the modern period (c.1800 to contemporary times), particularly in academic historiography.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Topics: history, human-sciences, sciences

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

noun

Meaning 3

Someone who lives in modern times.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

adjective

Meaning 4

belonging to the modern era; since the Middle Ages

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • modern art
  • modern furniture
  • modern history
  • totem poles are modern rather than prehistoric

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: nonmodern

5

adjective satellite

Meaning 5

characteristic of present-day art and music and literature and architecture

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

6

adjective satellite

Meaning 6

used of a living language; being the current stage in its development

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • Modern English
  • New Hebrew is Israeli Hebrew

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: New

Antonyms: none provided

7

adjective satellite

Meaning 7

relating to a recently developed fashion or style;

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • their offices are in a modern skyscraper
  • tables in modernistic designs

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: mod, modernistic

Antonyms: none provided

8

adjective satellite

Meaning 8

ahead of the times

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • the advanced teaching methods
  • had advanced views on the subject
  • a forward-looking corporation
  • is British industry innovative enough?

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: advanced, forward-looking, innovative

Antonyms: none provided

9

noun

Meaning 9

a typeface (based on an 18th century design by Gianbattista Bodoni) distinguished by regular shape and hairline serifs and heavy downstrokes

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: modern font, Bodoni, Bodoni font

Antonyms: old style

Broader terms: proportional font

10

noun

Meaning 10

a contemporary person

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: person, individual, someone, somebody, mortal, soul

History

Etymology

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.

Across languages

Translations

106 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Arabic: عَصْرِيّ (ʕaṣriyy) — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Arabic: حَدِيث (ḥadīṯ) — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Arabic: مُعَاصِر (muʕāṣir) — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Armenian: ժամանակակից (žamanakakicʻ) — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Armenian: արդիական (ardiakan) — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Asturian: modernu — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Azerbaijani: müasir — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Azerbaijani: çağdaş — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Belarusian: суча́сны (sučásny) — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Bengali: আধুনিক (adhunik) — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Bulgarian: моде́рен (modéren) — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Bulgarian: съвреме́нен (sǎvreménen) — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Catalan: modern — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Chinese Mandarin: 現代的 /现代的 (xiàndài de) — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Chinese Mandarin: 摩登 (módēng) — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Chinese Mandarin: 近代的 (jìndài de) — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Czech: moderní — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Czech: současný — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Danish: moderne — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Dutch: modern — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Dutch: eigentijds — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Dutch: hedendaags — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Dutch: nieuwerwets — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Esperanto: moderna — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Finnish: moderni — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Finnish: nykyaikainen — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Finnish: uudenaikainen — pertaining to the current time and style
  • French: moderne — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Galician: moderno — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Georgian: თანამედროვე (tanamedrove) — pertaining to the current time and style
  • German: modern — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Greek: μοντέρνος (montérnos) — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Greek: σύγχρονος (sýnchronos) — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Haitian Creole: modèn — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Hebrew: מוֹדֶרְנִי (moderní) — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Hindi: आधुनिक (ādhunik) — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Hungarian: modern — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Icelandic: nútímalegur — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Ido: moderna — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Indonesian: modern — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Indonesian: mutakhir — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Ingrian: nykyaikain — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Irish: nua-aoiseach — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Irish: nua-aimseartha — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Italian: moderno — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Japanese: モダンな (modan na) — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Japanese: 近代的 (kindaiteki) — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Japanese: 現代的 ( (gendaiteki) — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Kazakh: модернистік (modernistık) — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Khmer: ទំនើប (tumnəəp) — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Khmer: សម័យថ្មី (sa’may tməy) — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Korean: 현대의 (hyeondae'ui) — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Kyrgyz: заманбап (zamanbap) — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Latvian: moderns — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Macedonian: модерен (moderen) — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Macedonian: современ (sovremen) — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Manchu: ᠨᡝᡳ ᡶᠣᠩᡤᡝ (nei fongge) — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Norman: modèrne — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Norwegian: moderne — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Odia: ଆଧୁନିକ (ādhunika) — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Old English: niewe — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Old English: geong — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Persian: مدرن — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Persian: امروزی (emruzi) — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Persian: زمانوی (zamānavi) — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Plautdietsch: niemootsch — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Polish: nowoczesny — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Polish: współczesny — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Portuguese: moderno — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Russian: совреме́нный (sovreménnyj) — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Scottish Gaelic: nodha — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Scottish Gaelic: ùr-nodha — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Serbo-Croatian: модеран — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Serbo-Croatian: савремен — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Serbo-Croatian: moderan — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Serbo-Croatian: savremen — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Slovak: moderný — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Slovak: súčasný — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Slovene: moderen — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Slovene: sodoben — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Lower Sorbian: moderny — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Spanish: moderno — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Swedish: modern — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Swedish: nutida — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Tagalog: moderno — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Tajik: замонавӣ (zamonavi) — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Tatar: замандаш (zamandaş) — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Tatar: чакташ (çaqtaş) — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Telugu: ఆధునికం (ādhunikaṁ) — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Turkish: çağdaş — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Turkish: modern — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Turkish: muasır — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Turkish: çağcıl — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Ukrainian: суча́сний (sučásnyj) — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Vietnamese: hiện đại — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Volapük: nulädik — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Yiddish: מאָדערן — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Zazaki: modern — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Zhuang: ciuhneix — pertaining to the current time and style
  • Danish: moderne — pertaining to history from c. 1800 onwards
  • Finnish: moderni — pertaining to history from c. 1800 onwards
  • French: moderne — pertaining to history from c. 1800 onwards
  • Greek: νεώτερος (neóteros) — pertaining to history from c. 1800 onwards
  • Russian: совреме́нный (sovreménnyj) — pertaining to history from c. 1800 onwards
  • Swedish: modern — pertaining to history from c. 1800 onwards
  • Tagalog: moderno — pertaining to history from c. 1800 onwards
Real reading context

modern in complete knowledge articles