Meaning & use
vintage
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Meanings
adjectivebefore a nounapproving
Old but of high quality or lasting appeal, especially an item considered a fine example of its time.
Grammar: Usually before a noun: a vintage car.
Patterns
- a vintage car
- vintage clothing
He drives a vintage sports car from the 1960s.
She loves browsing vintage clothing shops.
The vintage poster sold for a high price.
nouncountablespecialist
The year in which grapes for a particular wine were harvested, or wine from a particular year.
Grammar: Counted noun in wine: the 2015 vintage.
Patterns
- the vintage of something
The 2010 vintage is considered exceptional.
This wine is from an excellent vintage.
The shop sells rare vintages from France.
nounsingularformal
The time when something was produced or came into use.
Grammar: Used with 'of': a song of recent vintage.
Patterns
- of recent vintage
- of early vintage
The computer was of 1990s vintage.
These jokes are of a different vintage.
Their friendship is of long vintage.
adjectivebefore a nouninformal
Showing the best qualities of a person or work from an earlier period.
Grammar: Often 'vintage' + name: vintage Hitchcock.
Patterns
- vintage something
The film is vintage Hitchcock.
That speech was vintage Churchill.
Her joke was vintage her sense of humor.
Word forms
| plural | vintages |
|---|
Common combinations
- vintage car
- The wedding car was a vintage Rolls-Royce.
- vintage wine
- They opened a bottle of vintage wine.
- vintage clothing
- She buys vintage clothing at markets.
- vintage year
- 2005 was a vintage year for the region.
- vintage fair
- A vintage fair is held every spring.
Synonyms and how they differ
- antique
- Antique is stricter and usually means over a hundred years old, while vintage can be much younger.
- classic
- Classic describes lasting excellence and need not be old.
- retro
- Retro describes a style that imitates the past and can be brand new.
- old-fashioned
- Old-fashioned suggests outdated, often negatively, whereas vintage is positive.
Opposites
Word family
- vintner noun
- a wine merchant or maker
- vintage-style adjective
- made to look old
- vintner's noun
- a shop for wine
Commonly confused: vintage or antique? vintage or retro?
vintage vs antique
An antique is normally at least a century old, while vintage may only be a few decades.
vintage vs retro
Retro things imitate old styles but may be newly made.
Practice
Which item is most likely to be called vintage?
Choose one answer.
Vintage suggests genuine age with lasting appeal, which fits the 1970s jacket. The retro-style shirt only imitates the past.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “vintage”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.