Word Origin Atlas

Exact historical dictionary sense

Modern in Webster's 1913 dictionary

The 1913 record labels modern as adjective. Its source-bounded etymology and selected historical definition appear below.

WEBSTER 1913adjective
Modern

[F. moderne, L. modernus; akin to modo just now, orig. abl. of modus measure; hence, by measure, just now. See Mode.]

Cross-verified historical sense
The source text may be outdated. The page preserves that historical boundary.
Cross-verified 1913 record
Headwordmodern
Part of speechadjective
Historical etymology[F. moderne, L. modernus; akin to modo just now, orig. abl. of modus measure; hence, by measure, just now. See Mode.]
Selected historical definitionOf or pertaining to the present time, or time not long past; late; not ancient or remote in past time; of recent period; as, modern days, ages, or time; modern authors; modern fashions; modern taste; modern practice.
Signed record IDwebster1913-modern-adjective-12220c04fcd7
Source locatorCIDE.M, paragraph 8355; Gutenberg eBook 665
Edition-scoped answerNot earliest-attestation proofNot modern consensus
Independent historical textProject Gutenberg section 665Signed structural record sourceGNU GCIDE 0.54 archive
Quick answer

In Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913), "modern" is labeled adjective. Its etymology is recorded as: "[F. moderne, L. modernus; akin to modo just now, orig. abl. of modus measure; hence, by measure, just now. See Mode.]" The selected historical definition says: "Of or pertaining to the present time, or time not long past; late; not ancient or remote in past time; of recent period; as, modern days, ages, or time; modern authors; modern fashions; modern taste; modern practice."

Project Gutenberg Webster 1913 plus signed GNU GCIDE 0.54 Exact cross-verified historical record reviewed 2026-10-04

What this answer proves

One named sense in one historical dictionary edition.

The answer reports the selected headword, part of speech, etymology, definition, and source locator as transcribed in the cross-verified 1913 record.

Evidence boundaryIt does not establish the earliest attestation or a complete borrowing chain.It does not claim current scholarly consensus or a modern dictionary definition.Historical dictionary text may be obsolete, incomplete, inaccurate, or offensive by modern standards.

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