archaistic
|ar-cha-is-tic|
🇺🇸
/ˌɑɹkəˈɪstɪk/
🇬🇧
/ˌɑːkəˈɪstɪk/
deliberately old-fashioned
Etymology
'archaistic' originates from Greek via Latin and English, specifically from Greek 'arkhaios' meaning 'ancient' combined in English with the suffix '-istic' (from Greek '-istikos') meaning 'relating to'.
'archaistic' changed from the adjective 'archaic' (from Late Latin 'archaicus' and Greek 'arkhaios') with the addition of the suffix '-istic' to form a word meaning 'relating to or imitating archaic forms,' eventually becoming the modern English 'archaistic'.
Initially connected to the basic sense 'ancient' (from Greek), it evolved to mean specifically 'imitative of ancient or earlier styles' or 'deliberately old-fashioned' in modern usage.
Meanings by Part of Speech
Adjective 1
deliberately using or imitating features of an earlier period (words, spellings, styles); evocative of archaic forms.
The poet's archaistic diction gave the ballad a medieval feel.
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Adjective 2
markedly old-fashioned in style or usage (sometimes used critically to describe something unnecessarily antiquated).
Critics called the committee's procedures archaistic and in need of reform.
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Last updated: 2025/10/04 13:16