yesterday

1 of 2

adverb

yes·​ter·​day ˈye-stər-(ˌ)dā How to pronounce yesterday (audio)
-dē
Synonyms of yesterdaynext
1
: on the day last past : on the day preceding today
2
: at a time not long past : only a short time ago
I wasn't born yesterday

yesterday

2 of 2

noun

1
: the day last past : the day next before the present
2
: recent time : time not long past
3
: past time
—usually used in plural

Synonyms

Noun

See all Synonyms & Antonyms in Thesaurus 

Examples of yesterday in a Sentence

Adverb It rained heavily yesterday afternoon. I mailed the application early yesterday morning. It was good to see you yesterday. Noun Yesterday's game was canceled because of the rain. The radio program features yesterday's songs as well as today's. Today's cars aren't all that different from the models of yesterday.

Word History

Etymology

Adverb

Middle English yisterday, from Old English giestran dæg, from giestran yesterday + dæg day; akin to Old High German gestaron yesterday, Latin heri, Greek chthes

First Known Use

Adverb

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of yesterday was before the 12th century

Phrases Containing yesterday

Dictionary Entries Near yesterday

yester

yesterday

yesterday's news

See More Nearby Entries 

Cite this Entry

“Yesterday.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/yesterday. Accessed 22 Nov. 2024.

Copy Citation

Share

Kids Definition

yesterday

1 of 2 adverb
yes·​ter·​day ˈyes-tərd-ē How to pronounce yesterday (audio)
1
: on the day before today
2
: at a time not long past

yesterday

2 of 2 noun
1
: the day next before the present
2
: recent time : time not long past

More from Merriam-Webster on yesterday

Nglish: Translation of yesterday for Spanish Speakers

Britannica English: Translation of yesterday for Arabic Speakers

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See All

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)

Plural and Possessive Names: A Guide

The Difference Between 'i.e.' and 'e.g.'

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See All

Popular in Wordplay

See All

8 Words with Fascinating Histories

8 Words for Lesser-Known Musical Instruments

Birds Say the Darndest Things

10 Words from Taylor Swift Songs (Merriam's Version)

10 Scrabble Words Without Any Vowels
See All

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Word Game Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
little chihuahua dressing like a turkey for thanksgiving
Giving Thanks Quiz Decide which words express gratitude and which gi...