tantamount
adjective
Did you know?
Although tantamount (from the Anglo-French phrase tant amunter, meaning “to amount to as much”) was used three different ways in the early 17th century—as a noun, verb, and adjective—the adjective form has since proven paramount to English users: it’s still in use while the noun and verb are obsolete. This is not to say that the adjective hasn’t experienced change over the years. While it was once acceptable to use tantamount in a variety of different sentence structures, nowadays it is almost always followed by the word to. And to use it before a noun, as in “the two old friends exchanged tantamount greetings,” would now be considered, er, tantamount to riding a penny-farthing or boneshaker onto the expressway.
Examples of tantamount in a Sentence
John W. Dean, MSNBC Newsweek, 7 Apr. 2025
That revelation, the defense argued, was tantamount to acquittal and thus to try Read again on those charges would be a violation of her constitutional right to Double Jeopardy protections.
—Flint McColgan, Boston Herald, 3 Apr. 2025
Taking us out of the equation would water down and compromise the world’s ability to fight disease, and would be tantamount to compromising yourselves.
—Alice Park, Time, 2 Apr. 2025
Image In a state dominated by Democrats, with nominations tantamount to election, Mr. Johnston ran for governor in 1971 but narrowly lost the nomination to Representative Edwin Edwards, who went on to win the first of his four terms as governor.
—Robert D. McFadden, New York Times, 26 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for tantamount
Cite this Entry
“Tantamount.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tantamount. Accessed 13 Apr. 2025.
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tantamount
adjective
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