LONG AGO Synonyms: 48 Similar and Opposite Words

long ago 1 of 2

noun

Definition of long ago

as in antiquity

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Dissimilar Words

long-ago

2 of 2

adjective

as in bygone

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of long ago

Noun

As the former became more and more expected over the last half-decade, the latter was lost along the way — and maybe long ago along the way. — Sam McDowell 2, Kansas City Star, 2 Oct. 2026 The first iteration of the College Football Playoff was in 2014, not too long ago, in the grand scheme of things. — Ian Miller Outkick, FOXNews.com, 1 Oct. 2026

Adjective

First, though, Cline builds up to a description of a long-ago incident between the two boys that feels out of place in a novel about a more pervasive, murky sense of failure. — Emma Alpern, Vulture, 7 Sep. 2026 The hearty plate celebrated the historically humble fish, which is still caught in limited numbers in the Elbe today, and a preservation method that helped power all those long-ago journeys by sea. — Hannah Walhout, Travel + Leisure, 5 Sep. 2026 See All Example Sentences for long ago

Recent Examples of Synonyms for long ago

Noun

Burnham, who has long supported the antiquities’ return to Athens over the last 25 years of his career, was considered by Greek officials to be the best hope of finally ending the feud.

— Francesca Aton, ARTnews.com, 7 Oct. 2026
The Palmyran relief, alongside 14 mosaics taken from a Syrian Roman villa, are part of a collection of 31 Middle Eastern and North African antiquities allegedly brought to New York by trafficker Georges Lotfi.

— News Desk, Artforum, 25 Sep. 2026

Definition of antiquity

Adjective

This decline is often captured sentimentally in memoirs about the Jewish South of a bygone era or photographs of Jewish cemeteries in various states of disrepair.

— Ashley Walters, The Conversation, 30 Sep. 2026
Their work here evokes the grubby, pixellated textures and the seedy-dreamy ambience of a bygone trash-TV era.

— Justin Chang, New Yorker, 25 Sep. 2026

Definition of bygone

Adjective

During the renovation, a grenade from the Spanish Civil War was unearthed—fortunately defunct.

— Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 6 Oct. 2026
Herman, a former professor in UCLA’s painting and drawing department and co-founder of the now-defunct Black Dragon Society gallery in Chinatown, lives with the work of his former students and friends crammed throughout his home.

— Marissa Gluck, Los Angeles Times, 6 Oct. 2026

Definition of defunct

Adjective

Millet’s 2022 novel Dinosaurs also reflects her fascination with long extinct creatures.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 6 Oct. 2026
Now, scientists have identified the extinct crocodile species that lived millions of years before the Egyptians built the structures.

— Taylor Nicioli, CNN Money, 6 Oct. 2026

Definition of extinct

Adjective

Not only can throwing these items away keep your home functional by not keeping expired items on hand, but Jones says this also helps to reduce the visual clutter as well.

— Ashlyn Needham, The Spruce, 17 Sep. 2026
Updating your medicine cabinet will take care of any expired medications and reduce needless excess.

— Louise Parks, Martha Stewart, 16 Sep. 2026

Definition of expired

Adjective

Maud is then forced to reckon with her crimes, both present and past.

— Jesse Whittock, Deadline, 8 Oct. 2026
The late-forming storm has already disrupted offshore oil production and tourism, while its path threatens coastal communities still scarred by past hurricanes.

— R.j. Rico, Los Angeles Times, 8 Oct. 2026

Definition of past

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Style

“Long ago.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/long%20ago. Accessed 10 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of long ago

noun

adjective

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