antient

plural antients

1. obsoleteObsolete spelling of ancient.

   The Priests, Antients, and Captaines, made their orations, all congratulating his election.

   1604, José de Acosta, translated by E.G., The naturall and morall historie of the East and West Indies, page 540

   4 more examples

   Cicero héereby being blowen vp with ambition, sayde, he perceyued a conspiracie to be wrought by the Captaynes abroade, and therefore he thought good to pleasure this yong man, béeyng not well intreated, and Lorde of a greate armye, and rather to graunte him an office in the Citie before his time, than to force him to be in armes, least he might do something that should not content the Senate, and wished some of the wise antients might be appoynted, as a maister of his yong yeares.

   1578, Appian of Alexandria, translated by William Barker, An auncient historie and exquisite chronicle of the Romanes warres, page 216

   In the Indian histories there is often mention made of Lezards or Caymans (as they call them) and they are the very same which Plinie and the Antients call Crocodiles, they finde them on the sea side, and in hote rivers, for in colde rivers there are none to be found.

   1604, José de Acosta, translated by E.G., The naturall and morall historie of the East and West Indies, page 165

   Our voyagers make beasts under the name of Pongos, Mandrills, and Orang-Outang, of the very beings, which the antients exalted into divinities under the name of Satyrs, Fauns, and Sylvans.

   1761, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, A discourse upon the origin and foundation of the inequality among mankind, page 230

   We likewise see by the valuable Work of Andrew Burdon, professor of the Royal French Academy of Painting, that the Antients occasionally used the Amphora form in other parts of the world as both cinereous and lachrymal urns; […]

   1802, Maria Guthrie, Matthew Guthrie, A tour performed in the years 1795-6 through the Taurida, or Crimea, the ancient kingdom of Bosphorus, the once-powerful republic of Tauric Cherson, and all the other countries on the north shore of the Euxine, ceded to Russia by the peace of Kainardgi and Jassy, page 439

comparative antienter · comparative more antient · superlative antientest · superlative most antient

1. obsoleteObsolete spelling of ancient.

   And these be the antient beginnings of the great countrey of Illyria.

   1578, Appian of Alexandria, translated by William Barker, An auncient historie and exquisite chronicle of the Romanes warres, page 282

   5 more examples

   In Gascoine, the wiues are in no subiection at all, but gad vp and downe at theyr pleasures, like antient Amazons.

   1599, Robert Allott, Wits theater of the little world, page 111

   The first being the workes of Nature, contrarie to the antient and receiued Philosophy, as to shew that the region which they call the burning Zone, is very moist, and in many places very temperate, and that it raines there, whenas the Sunne is neerest, with such like things.

   1604, José de Acosta, translated by E.G., The naturall and morall historie of the East and West Indies, The authors advertisement to the reader

   I did but prompt the age to quit their cloggs By the known rules of antient libertie, When strait a barbarous noise environs me Of Owles and Cuckoes, Asses, Apes and Doggs

   1673, John Milton, I did but prompt the age to quit their cloggs

   The trial by jury, your Lordship knows, is so antient a privilege belonging to mankind, that its origin cannot properly be traced.

   1785, Dawes, Manasseh & Jones, Sir William, England's Alarm!, page 10

   The choral and orchestral concerts at the Antient Concert Rooms were of more than usual interest.

   1906, The Athenaeum, page 745