prehistoric
Before written records
Prehistoric describes the time before written records began, roughly before 3000 BCE in most regions: prehistoric cave paintings, prehistoric humans.
The word often evokes ancient creatures like dinosaurs, though technically it covers any era lacking documentation.
Informally, prehistoric means extremely outdated or primitive: His views on women are prehistoric.
Very old indeed
- primordialExisting from the start
- antediluvianExtremely old or obsolete
- primevalFrom earliest times
- archaicBelonging to earlier times
bygone · immemorial · protohistoric · early · formative · antiquity · eons · millennia
Extinct European hominins
- AustralopithecusExtinct hominin genus
- hominidsHuman-like primate family
- paleoanthropologyScience of ancestral human remains
- bipedalismWalking on two limbs
cranium · fossils · migration · tools · ancestors · Denisovans · upright · skull
Earliest archaeological era
- NeolithicFinal prehistoric stone-tool era
- MesolithicMiddle stone era
- flintknappingStriking stone to shape tools
- handaxeKnapped stone implement
hunter-gatherers · cave paintings · nomadic · foragers · fire · toolmaking · spear · tribes
Dinosaur-dominated geological period
- CretaceousFinal Mesozoic period
- TriassicFirst Mesozoic period
- MesozoicAge of Reptiles
- paleontologyStudy of ancient organisms
Velociraptor · sauropod · theropod · Brachiosaurus · Iguanodon · extinction · reptilian · fossils
Decayed structural remains
- UNESCOCultural arm of UN
- megalithicOf giant stone construction
- monumentStructure honoring someone remembered
- landmarkNotable point of reference
excavation · Stonehenge · Carnac · Lascaux · Altamira · dig · preservation · artifact
Extinct segmented marine arthropod
- ammoniteExtinct spiral-shelled cephalopod
- amberHardened ancient tree secretion
- petrifiedSolidified or fear-paralyzed
- sedimentParticles settling in liquid
stratigraphy · carbon-dating · excavation · paleobotany · coprolite · impression · specimen · paleobiology
Extinct woolly elephants
- mastodonsExtinct elephant-like mammals
- sabertoothExtinct large-fanged cat
- direwolfExtinct oversized wolf
- glyptodonExtinct armored ice-age mammal
Pleistocene · extinction · auroch · moa · tarpits
ancient
Very old indeed
- primordialExisting from the start
- antediluvianExtremely old or obsolete
- primevalFrom earliest times
archaic · bygone · immemorial · protohistoric · early · formative · antiquity · eons · millennia · deep time
Neanderthals
Extinct European hominins
- AustralopithecusExtinct hominin genus
- hominidsHuman-like primate family
- paleoanthropologyScience of ancestral human remains
bipedalism · cranium · fossils · migration · tools · ancestors · Denisovans · upright · skull · evolution
Paleolithic
Earliest archaeological era
- NeolithicFinal prehistoric stone-tool era
- MesolithicMiddle stone era
- flintknappingStriking stone to shape tools
handaxe · hunter-gatherers · cave paintings · nomadic · foragers · fire · toolmaking · spear · tribes · shamanism
Jurassic
Dinosaur-dominated geological period
- CretaceousFinal Mesozoic period
- TriassicFirst Mesozoic period
- MesozoicAge of Reptiles
paleontology · Velociraptor · sauropod · theropod · Brachiosaurus · Iguanodon · extinction · reptilian · fossils · bones
ruins
Decayed structural remains
- UNESCOCultural arm of UN
- megalithicOf giant stone construction
- monumentStructure honoring someone remembered
landmark · excavation · Stonehenge · Carnac · Lascaux · Altamira · dig · preservation · artifact · relic
trilobite
Extinct segmented marine arthropod
- ammoniteExtinct spiral-shelled cephalopod
- amberHardened ancient tree secretion
- petrifiedSolidified or fear-paralyzed
sediment · stratigraphy · carbon-dating · excavation · paleobotany · coprolite · impression · specimen · paleobiology · invertebrate
mammoths
Extinct woolly elephants
- mastodonsExtinct elephant-like mammals
- sabertoothExtinct large-fanged cat
- direwolfExtinct oversized wolf
glyptodon · Pleistocene · extinction · auroch · moa · tarpits
- ancient timesancient, primeval, primitive, primordial, archaic
- erasera, epoch, age, bronze age, period
- historical dating termsBC, AD, BCE, CE, carbon dating
- historyancient civilizations, past events, historian, epochs, era
- timesecond, minute, hour, day, seconds
- prehistorystone tools, Neolithic, Stone Age, caveman, cavemen
prehistoricmodern
Of recent times
contemporary · historic · present-day · historical · current
prehistoricmodern
Of recent times
cutting-edge · up-to-date · contemporary · ultramodern · state-of-the-art
prehistorichistoric
Of lasting significance
recorded · historical · documented · written · chronicled
- prehistoric toolsImplements predating written records
- prehistoric monster
- prehistoric timesEra predating written records
- prehistoric lifeOrganisms predating human records
- prehistoric humansHumans before recorded history
- prehistoric creatureAnimal from ancient eras