What does "archetype" mean?
An original model of which all other similar concepts, objects, or persons are merely copied, derivative, emulated, or patterned; a prototype.
Archetype
/ˈɑːkɪtaɪp/ noun, verb
noun, verb ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: An original model of which all other similar concepts, objects, or persons are merely copied, derivative, emulated, or patterned; a prototype.
- Grammar: archetype is listed as noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: model, absalom, aeneas, aesthetic form.
- Usage evidence: My characters all have something of the hero archetype about them, in that they are largely stripped of context.
How to use "archetype"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "archetype" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "archetype" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "archetype" as the right word for your sentence.
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Compare nearby meanings
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Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "archetype" is acting as noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "model" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
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Final meaning check
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When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 An original model of which all other similar concepts, objects, or persons are merely copied, derivative, emulated, or patterned; a prototype.
"According to that Cabaliſticall Dogma: If Abram had not had this Letter [i.e., ה (he)] added unto his Name he had remained fruitleſſe, and without the power of generation: […] So that being ſterill before, he received the power of generation from that meaſure and manſion in the Archetype; and was made conformable unto Binah."
- 2 something that serves as a model or a basis for making copies wordnet
- 3 An ideal example of something; a quintessence.
"The Bishop [of Gloucester, William Warburton] asserts there is no Archetype, because eloquence is a variable thing, depending on custom and fashion; […] there is no Archetype in nature of perfect eloquence; its very constituent parts, as they are deemed, having no substance or reality in them."
- 4 A character, object, or story that is based on a known character, object, or story.
"Archetypes are figures and creatures that inhabit the pools of the world's mythology, folk tales, epics, and ballads. […] Thus archetypes are universal essences that we all recognize: the Mother, the Lover, the Trickster, the Spiritual and Temporal Leader, the Devil."
- 5 According to Swiss psychologist Carl Jung: a universal pattern of thought, present in an individual's unconscious, inherited from the past collective experience of humanity.
"The three archetypes so far discussed—the shadow, the anima, and the wise old man—are of a kind that can be directly experienced in personified form. In the foregoing I tried to indicate the general psychological conditions in which such an experience arises. But what I conveyed were only abstract generalizations. One could, or rather should, really give a description of the process as it occurs in immediate experience. In the course of this process the archetypes appear as active personalities in dreams and fantasies."
Show 1 more definition
- 6 A protograph (“original manuscript of a text from which all further copies derive”).
"The outstanding importance of this manuscript for the text of Aeschylus has long been recognized. In the last century some scholars even persuaded themselves that it was the archetype of the whole extant tradition."
Verb
- 1 To depict as, model using, or otherwise associate an object or subject with an archetype.
"The whole issue of generalizing and overgeneralizing is always an issue. I use the term "archetyping." I say, "No, I am not stereotyping; I am archetyping." Stereotypes tend to be accusatory. I want to move the discussion away from a discussion of right and wrong to right and left—this is the way it is over here, and this is the way it is over there—and then look at the problems that develop as a result of each group interacting according to the standards of its own culture."
Example
"My characters all have something of the hero archetype about them, in that they are largely stripped of context."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "archetype"?
Common synonyms include: model, absalom, aeneas, aesthetic form, antetype, antitype.
How do you use "archetype" in a sentence?
My characters all have something of the hero archetype about them, in that they are largely stripped of context.
How do you pronounce "archetype"?
Pronounced /ˈɑːkɪtaɪp/.
Etymology
From Old French architipe (modern French archétype), from Latin archetypum (“original”), from Ancient Greek ἀρχέτυπον (arkhétupon, “model, pattern”), the neuter form of ἀρχέτυπος (arkhétupos, “first-moulded”), from ἀρχή (arkhḗ, “beginning, origin”) (from ἄρχω (árkhō, “to begin; to lead, rule”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₂ergʰ- (“to begin; to command, rule”)) + τῠ́πος (tŭ́pos, “blow, pressing; sort, type”) (from τύπτω (túptō, “to beat, strike”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)tewp- (“to push; to stick”)).