modernity
noun
mo·der·ni·ty
mə-ˈdər-nə-tē 
mä-,
-ˈder-
1
: the quality or state of being or appearing to be modern
Such details as street lamps, telephone booths, mailboxes and manhole covers have been expensively recreated to recall a past that makes even young Hungarians nostalgic and Western tourists regret the flashy modernity of their cities.—
Henry Kamm
Henry KammHis early work portrayed the idiosyncratic behavior of his zany upper-class family whose wealth and quest for modernity impelled them to try out all the latest inventions and devices of the time, from electric razors to automobiles to flying machines.—Naomi Rosenblum
Naomi Rosenblum2
: the modern era or world and especially the ideas and attitudes associated with the modern world
For all his conservatism, Henry Adams's encounter with modernity led neither to romantic antiquarianism … nor to an intensified commitment to those very liberal arts that were under siege in a market society.—Peter N. Miller
Peter N. MillerExamples of modernity in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Rodriguez sighed, resigned to the march of modernity.
—Gustavo Arellano, Los Angeles Times, 22 May 2024
Instead, they’re built up and burned down, then they’re rebuilt and improved in fits and starts, dragged into modernity — not without outrage and criticism — by visionary urban developers like Robert Moses (New York) and Georges-Eugène Haussmann (Paris).
—Peter Debruge, Variety, 16 May 2024
See all Example Sentences for modernity 
Gustavo Arellano, Los Angeles Times, 22 May 2024
Instead, they’re built up and burned down, then they’re rebuilt and improved in fits and starts, dragged into modernity — not without outrage and criticism — by visionary urban developers like Robert Moses (New York) and Georges-Eugène Haussmann (Paris).
—Peter Debruge, Variety, 16 May 2024
See all Example Sentences for modernity
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'modernity.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Modernity.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/modernity. Accessed 1 Jun. 2024.
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