Words / C1

OBS-uh-leet/ˈɒbsəliːt/

Obsolete means replaced by something newer: obsolete software, render a form obsolete. Old-fashioned can still be in use; outdated (cousin) is “behind the times”. Defunct (already in the dictionary) is no longer operating. Do not call a still-required wet-ink signature obsolete if the auditors still want it.

Meaning

No longer used because something newer has replaced it.

Examples

• “The paper form is obsolete; the portal still cannot export a CSV.”
• “The paper carbon is obsolete; the portal still cannot export a CSV, which is the joke.”
• “Outdated may still run; obsolete has been superseded. Defunct is dead as an institution. A legally required wet signature is not obsolete yet.”

Good to know

Out of date because replaced. Close: outdated. Contrast: old-fashioned (still usable); defunct (no longer running). Not “the auditors still want it”.

Near in meaning

outdated

New