postmodern
adjective
post·mod·ern
ˌpōs(t)-ˈmä-dərn 
nonstandard -ˈmä-d(ə-)rən
1
: of, relating to, or being an era after a modern one
postmodern times
a postmodern metropolis
2
a
: of, relating to, or being any of various movements in reaction to modernism that are typically characterized by a return to traditional materials and forms (as in architecture) or by ironic self-reference and absurdity (as in literature)
b
: of, relating to, or being a theory that involves a radical reappraisal of modern assumptions about culture, identity, history, or language
postmodern feminism
Examples of postmodern in a Sentence
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The original Swan and Dolphin were designed by renowned postmodern architect Michael Graves, whose whimsical vision helped make the hotels instantly recognizable.
—
Jacqueline Dole, Southern Living, 22 May 2026
Jimmy wants to create a performance piece that’s got a postmodern sting.
—Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 20 May 2026
In those heady decades of postmodern language-play and seductive irresolution, claims for literature as a force for truth and justice would likely be dismissed, with a smirk, as humanist pieties.
—Charlie Tyson, The Atlantic, 27 Apr. 2026
By the ‘80s, the garden was gone, replaced by a pavilion by Hardy Holzman Pfeiffer — a postmodern Mesopotamian gate with glass blocks and undulating turquoise handrails.
—Bloomberg, 24 Apr. 2026
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Jacqueline Dole, Southern Living, 22 May 2026
Jimmy wants to create a performance piece that’s got a postmodern sting.
—Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 20 May 2026
In those heady decades of postmodern language-play and seductive irresolution, claims for literature as a force for truth and justice would likely be dismissed, with a smirk, as humanist pieties.
—Charlie Tyson, The Atlantic, 27 Apr. 2026
By the ‘80s, the garden was gone, replaced by a pavilion by Hardy Holzman Pfeiffer — a postmodern Mesopotamian gate with glass blocks and undulating turquoise handrails.
—Bloomberg, 24 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for postmodern
Cite this Entry
“Postmodern.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/postmodern. Accessed 29 May. 2026.
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