contemporary

1 of 2

adjective

con·​tem·​po·​rary kən-ˈtem-pə-ˌrer-ē How to pronounce contemporary (audio)
-ˌre-rē
1
a
: marked by characteristics of the present period : modern, current
contemporary American literature
contemporary standards
2
: happening, existing, living, or coming into being during the same period of time
The book is based on contemporary accounts of the war.
contemporarily adverb

contemporary

2 of 2

noun

plural contemporaries
1
: one that is contemporary with another
Petrarch and Chaucer were contemporaries.
2
: one of the same or nearly the same age as another

Did you know?

Contemporary can be confusing because of its slightly different meanings. In everyday use, it generally means simply "modern" or "new". But before the 20th century it instead referred only to things from the same era as certain other things; so, for instance, Jesus was contemporary with the Roman emperors Augustus and Tiberius, and Muhammad was contemporary with Pope Gregory the Great. And contemporary is also a noun: thus, Jane Austen's contemporaries included Coleridge and Wordsworth, and your own contemporaries were born around the same year that you were.

Choose the Right Synonym for contemporary

contemporary, contemporaneous, coeval, synchronous, simultaneous, coincident mean existing or occurring at the same time.

contemporary is likely to apply to people and what relates to them.

Abraham Lincoln was contemporary with Charles Darwin

contemporaneous is more often applied to events than to people.

contemporaneous accounts of the kidnapping

coeval refers usually to periods, ages, eras, eons.

two stars thought to be coeval

synchronous implies exact correspondence in time and especially in periodic intervals.

synchronous timepieces

simultaneous implies correspondence in a moment of time.

the two shots were simultaneous

coincident is applied to events and may be used in order to avoid implication of causal relationship.

the end of World War II was coincident with a great vintage year

Examples of contemporary in a Sentence

Adjective the absurd notion that early cave dwellers were contemporary with the dinosaurs a magazine devoted to contemporary fashions Noun He was a contemporary of George Washington. She is politically very different from most of her contemporaries.
Recent Examples on the Web
Adjective
For a second year in a row, Sony Music Publishing took home the award for contemporary Latin publisher of the year. Griselda Flores, Billboard, 14 Mar. 2024 Benu Influenced by the cuisine of his hometown, Seoul, Korea, chef-owner Cory Lee crafts contemporary Asian dishes at Benu. Jenna Anderson, Sunset Magazine, 13 Mar. 2024 Currently, the eye-catching contemporary abode is operating as a 12-person vacation rental. Abby Montanez, Robb Report, 13 Mar. 2024 Hailing from South Carolina, Lake is a member of the contemporary worship music collective Maverick City Music. Jim Harrington, The Mercury News, 13 Mar. 2024 There seem to be critiques of contemporary Christianity, too. Madison Bloom, Pitchfork, 13 Mar. 2024 After making a name for herself as one of the most in-demand songwriters in contemporary pop music, Monét has built an impressive career for herself as a recording artist. Kyle Denis, Billboard, 1 Mar. 2024 Pawlowski’s menu deftly navigates classic and contemporary Italian dishes. Kim Westerman, Forbes, 29 Feb. 2024 Whitfield Lovell: Passages This exhibition is the most comprehensive of the contemporary artist to date. Luann Gibbs, The Enquirer, 28 Feb. 2024
Noun
Appreciations of Lawrence from friends and contemporaries began to roll in Thursday. Chris Willman, Variety, 7 Mar. 2024 These fans appeared to be her contemporaries and probably witnessed, first hand, her ascent to global stardom. Martha Ross, The Mercury News, 28 Feb. 2024 In 1684 one of Halley’s contemporaries, Robert Hooke, claimed to be able to derive Kepler’s laws of planetary motion from simpler principles. Paul M. Sutter, Scientific American, 15 Feb. 2024 Tucked among the mountain homes in the Lake Tahoe-area community of Gray’s Crossing is a brand-new contemporary designed by MWA Architects and built by Mountain Life Construction. Lauren Beale, Forbes, 10 Feb. 2024 The New Look will premiere on Feb. 14 and follows the true stories of how designers Christian Dior, Coco Chanel, and their contemporaries navigated World War II while living, working, and launching modern fashion in Paris at the time. Emily Zemler, Rolling Stone, 7 Feb. 2024 For the seedings and results to have worked out so that Jackson could take a shot at his contemporary on this stage is special. Chris Bumbaca, USA TODAY, 27 Jan. 2024 Because Arnold was paid handsomely for transferring allegiances, most of his contemporaries chalked up his actions to simple greed. Barbara Spindel, The Christian Science Monitor, 1 Mar. 2024 In going somewhere around 2,225 mph (Mach 2.9) the EX bested the renowned Soviet MiG-25 Foxbat, a contemporary of the legacy F-15A-D Eagles. Eric Tegler, Forbes, 21 Feb. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'contemporary.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

probably borrowed from New Latin contemporārius "existing at the same period of time," from Latin con- con- + tempor-, tempus "time" + -ārius -ary entry 2 — more at tempo

Note: The suffixation may be modeled on Latin temporārius; see temporary entry 1.

Noun

derivative of contemporary entry 1, or from nominal use of its probable source, New Latin contemporārius

First Known Use

Adjective

1614, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Noun

1614, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of contemporary was in 1614

Dictionary Entries Near contemporary

Cite this Entry

“Contemporary.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/contemporary. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

contemporary

1 of 2 adjective
con·​tem·​po·​rary kən-ˈtem-pə-ˌrer-ē How to pronounce contemporary (audio)
1
: living or occurring at the same period of time
2
: of the present time : modern, current

contemporary

2 of 2 noun
plural contemporaries
: a person who lives at the same time or is about the same age as another

More from Merriam-Webster on contemporary

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!