modern: Meaning and Definition of

mod•ern

Pronunciation: (mod'urn), [key]
— adj.
  1. of or pertaining to present and recent time; not ancient or remote: modern city life.
  2. characteristic of present and recent time; contemporary; not antiquated or obsolete: modern viewpoints.
  3. of or pertaining to the historical period following the Middle Ages: modern European history.
  4. of, pertaining to, or characteristic of contemporary styles of art, literature, music, etc., that reject traditionally accepted or sanctioned forms and emphasize individual experimentation and sensibility.
  5. (cap.) new (def. 12).
  6. noting or descriptive of a font of numerals in which the body aligns on the baseline, asCf.(def. 3).
—n.
  1. a person of modern times.
  2. a person whose views and tastes are modern.
  3. a type style differentiated from old style by heavy vertical strokes and straight serifs.
Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.
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