Meaning & use
new
Last updated
Meanings
adjectivecomparable
Recently made, built, bought, invented, or discovered; not existing before.
Grammar: Gradable: newer, newest. It can stand before a noun or after verbs like be, seem, and look.
Patterns
- a new phone
- new information
- look new
She bought a new laptop because the old one was too slow.
Scientists found new evidence during the survey.
The paint still looks new after five years.
adjectivebefore a noun
Different from the one that came before; changed or replaced.
Grammar: Usually comes directly before the noun: a new address, not the address is new for this replacement sense.
Patterns
- a new address
- a new version
- the new manager
They moved to a new apartment across the river.
The app has a new design this year.
He started a new job in March.
adjectiveafter a verb
Recently arrived in a place, group, job, or role.
Grammar: Common in be new to; contrast a new teacher before a noun with I am new to the school.
Patterns
- be new to a job
- be new to the area
- feel new to the team
I am still new to the team, so please explain the routine.
She is new to the city and learning the bus lines.
Our new colleague arrived this morning.
adjectiveafter a verb
Not yet familiar because something is experienced for the first time.
Grammar: Often follows be, feel, or seem and is completed by to someone/something.
Patterns
- feel new to someone
- be new to something
- the experience is new
Driving on the left felt new to her at first.
The work is new to me, but I am learning quickly.
Everything seemed new after the renovation.
Word forms
| comparative | newer |
|---|---|
| superlative | newest |
Common combinations
- brand new
- The car was brand new, with only ten miles on it.
- new to the job
- He is new to the job and asks careful questions.
- new evidence
- New evidence changed the direction of the investigation.
- new arrivals
- The website lists new arrivals every Friday.
Synonyms and how they differ
- novel
- Suggests new in an interesting or unusual way, not merely recent.
- fresh
- Often means newly made, available, or clean; can also suggest energy.
- modern
- Emphasizes current style or technology rather than simply not old.
- latest
- Means the most recent in a series, such as the latest update.
Opposites
Word family
Practice
As a supervisor, I'm still new ___ the scheduling software.
Choose one answer.
Use new to for a place, role, or activity you have recently started or do not know yet. At can appear in some fixed phrases, but to is the idiomatic choice here; for and with do not fit the pattern.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “new”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.