medieval

or me·di·ae·val

[ mee-dee-ee-vuhl, med-ee-, mid-ee-, mid-ee-vuhl ]

adjective

1. of, pertaining to, characteristic of, or in the style of the Middle Ages: Compare Middle Ages.

   medieval architecture.

2. Informal. extremely old-fashioned; primitive.

medieval

/ ˌmɛdɪˈiːvəl /

adjective

1. of, relating to, or in the style of the Middle Ages
2. informal.
   old-fashioned; primitive

medieval

1. A descriptive term for people, objects, events, and institutions of the Middle Ages .

Notes

“Medieval” is sometimes used as a term of disapproval for outdated ideas and customs. It may suggest inhuman practices, such as torture of prisoners. ( See Inquisition .)

Derived Forms

• ˌmediˈevally, adverb

Other Words From

• medi·eval·ly adverb
• anti·medi·eval adjective
• anti·medi·eval·ly adverb
• postme·di·eval adjective
• pseudo·medi·eval adjective
• pseudo·medi·eval·ly adverb
• quasi-medi·eval adjective
• unme·di·eval adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of medieval¹

1820–30; < New Latin medi ( um ) aev ( um ) the middle age + -al ¹. See medium, age

Word History and Origins

Origin of medieval¹

C19: from New Latin medium aevum the middle age. See medium , age

Example Sentences

I should add that Jefferson greatly admired the medieval world before the Norman Conquest of England in 1066 ended Anglo-Saxon rule.

From Salon

In the years following the American and French Revolutions, when calls for liberty from England and equality among citizens still echoed across the new nation, pro-slavery thinkers in the United States had little appetite for openly associating slavery and racial hierarchy with an antiquated European medieval feudal order.

From Salon

While there is evidence of slaveholders associating themselves with a type of feudal lordship and associating the skin aristocracy with medieval times during the opening decades of the 1800s, such claims blossomed in the 1820s and 1830s for several reasons.

From Salon

For him, "Southern society revived the genius of medieval civilization" and even surpassed it by imposing a racial hierarchy confirmed by ideas grounded in "science."

From Salon

Beyond identifying and criticizing racial slavery for African Americans in medieval terms, Easton similarly condemned the displacement of Indigenous people and Mexicans.

From Salon

Related Words

• antique
• archaic
• feudal
• Gothic
• primitive