as in ancient
dating or surviving from the distant past
hoary oak trees with dripping moss and gnarled limbs shaded us from the sun
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of hoary
And, yes, like other achievers of a darker hue, Harris has had to overcome the odds and obstacles thrown in her way, such as Conway’s hoary slur that Harris is lazy and doesn’t know how to speak.
—
Colbert I. King, Washington Post, 26 July 2024
And Williams is a hoary veteran next to his squad-mate Lamine Yamal, who has yet to turn seventeen.
—Anthony Lane, The New Yorker, 29 June 2024
Admittedly, there was less hoary public invocation of the doctrine, but attendance at the periodic summits remained de rigeur for the prime minister.
—Sumit Ganguly, Foreign Affairs, 19 Sep. 2016
This revival, despite some big rewrites by Harvey Fierstein, is still stuck around the sort of romantic cliches and hoary old body-image issues that most Broadway musicals strenuously avoid these days.
—Christopher Arnott, Hartford Courant, 20 June 2024
See all Example Sentences for hoary 
Colbert I. King, Washington Post, 26 July 2024
And Williams is a hoary veteran next to his squad-mate Lamine Yamal, who has yet to turn seventeen.
—Anthony Lane, The New Yorker, 29 June 2024
Admittedly, there was less hoary public invocation of the doctrine, but attendance at the periodic summits remained de rigeur for the prime minister.
—Sumit Ganguly, Foreign Affairs, 19 Sep. 2016
This revival, despite some big rewrites by Harvey Fierstein, is still stuck around the sort of romantic cliches and hoary old body-image issues that most Broadway musicals strenuously avoid these days.
—Christopher Arnott, Hartford Courant, 20 June 2024
See all Example Sentences for hoary
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hoary
Adjective
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Researchers in London recently uncovered a 2,000-year-old structure that once served as the hub of the bustling ancient city.—
Greta Cross,
USA TODAY,
19 Feb. 2025
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Editor's note: This story has been updated to reflect that the plesiosaur is considered a successful marine predatory ancient species.—
Julia Jacobo,
ABC News,
18 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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The suit and the FCC request have spurred intense concern in the West 57th Street offices of the venerable newsmagazine.—
Brian Steinberg,
Variety,
6 Feb. 2025
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The outbreak is intensifying as the Trump administration maintains a pause on most external federal health agency communications, including publication of CDC's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR), a venerable source of scientific reports on public health.—
Alex Golden,
Axios,
5 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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Sam Nivola as Lochlan Ratliff: The high school senior, Timothy and Victoria's youngest, is pulled between following the life path of his older sister and brother while deciding his major life decision: Whether to go to Duke or the University of North Carolina.—
Bryan Alexander,
USA TODAY,
18 Feb. 2025
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Because that’s not how my experience or any of the older players’ experience with the Giants was.—
Pat Leonard,
New York Daily News,
17 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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Past a series of antique rifles chained to a wall, past an intricate system of conveyor belts whisking books to the surface, the library stores an enormous collection of plays, manuscripts, and letters.—
Thomas Chatterton Williams,
The Atlantic,
6 Feb. 2025
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That antique machinery is what inspired all the visuals.—
Abbey White,
The Hollywood Reporter,
6 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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The pups become Aqua Pups who wear scuba gear, or medieval knights who wear armor, or super pups with superpowers--all changes that create new toys for parents to buy their eager children.—
Alana Semuels,
TIME,
14 Feb. 2025
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The Italian-American medieval epic El Cid (1961) saw Page perfectly cast as the scheming Princess Urraca.—
Rhett Bartlett,
The Hollywood Reporter,
14 Feb. 2025
Thesaurus Entries Near hoary
Cite this Entry
“Hoary.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hoary. Accessed 23 Feb. 2025.
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