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
As Native Americans traveled to Britain, and as the figure of the Native American was circulated and remediated via transatlantic print, performance, and visual culture, Native Americans became active participants in—not merely subjects of—transatlantic modernity.
—Abby Clayton, JSTOR Daily, 29 Apr. 2025
The world’s news cameras and column inches have since been trained on the Vatican, analyzing the complex legacy of the man who had been tasked with bringing a dose of modernity to Catholicism.
—Max Goldbart, Deadline, 25 Apr. 2025
The second phrase denoted the idea that a non-Western country could adopt some of the frameworks of Western modernity—such as particular kinds of military technology or constitutional and legal reforms—without sacrificing its authentic cultural self.
—Rana Mitter, Foreign Affairs, 22 Apr. 2025
In the 20th century, automobiles defined modernity.
—Justin Davidson, Curbed, 18 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for modernity
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Abby Clayton, JSTOR Daily, 29 Apr. 2025
The world’s news cameras and column inches have since been trained on the Vatican, analyzing the complex legacy of the man who had been tasked with bringing a dose of modernity to Catholicism.
—Max Goldbart, Deadline, 25 Apr. 2025
The second phrase denoted the idea that a non-Western country could adopt some of the frameworks of Western modernity—such as particular kinds of military technology or constitutional and legal reforms—without sacrificing its authentic cultural self.
—Rana Mitter, Foreign Affairs, 22 Apr. 2025
In the 20th century, automobiles defined modernity.
—Justin Davidson, Curbed, 18 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for modernity
Cite this Entry
“Modernity.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/modernity. Accessed 19 May. 2025.
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