archetype

Syllables: ar·che·typeUK/ˈɑːkɪtaɪp/US/ˈɑɹkɪtaɪp/

archetype noun: an original model of which all other similar concepts, objects, or persons are merely copied, derivative, emulated, or patterned.

Noun

archetype (plural archetypes)

An original model of which all other similar concepts, objects, or persons are merely copied, derivative, emulated, or patterned.
- Near-synonym: prototype (sometimes synonymous)
- 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...1658, Thomas Browne, “The Garden of Cyrus. […]. Chapter V.”, in Hydriotaphia, Urne-buriall, […] Together with The Garden of Cyrus, […], London: […] Hen[ry] Brome […], →OCLC, page 192
Synonyms:

prototype
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.1811, Richard Hurd, “A Letter to the Rev. Dr. Thomas Leland, […]”, in The Works of Richard Hurd, D.D. Lord Bishop of Worcester. In Eight Volumes, volume VIII, London: Printed for T[homas] Cadell and...
- “New Kid On The Block” doubles as a terrific showcase for the Sea Captain who, in the grand tradition of Simpsons supporting characters, quickly goes from being a stereotype to an archetype, from being a crusty sea-captain character to the crusty sea-captain character.2012 May 27, Nathan Rabin, “The Simpsons (Classic): “New Kid On The Block” (season 4, episode 8; originally aired 11/12/1992)”, in The A.V. Club, archived from the original on 31 May 2012
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.2009, Janet B. Rodgers, Frankie Armstrong, “Introduction: Acting and Singing with Archetypes: Tapping into Creative Potential”, in Acting and Singing with Archetypes, Milwaukee, Wis.: Limelight...
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...1968, C[arl] G[ustav] Jung, “Archetypes of the Collective Unconscious”, in R[ichard] F[rancis] C[arrington] Hull, transl., The Archetypes and the Collective Unconscious (Bollingen Series; XX), 2nd...
- It has been suggested that Prothean data recording is highly dependent on a certain point of view, what Carl Jung described as the collective unconscious. The 'cipher' needed to comprehend the images implanted in Shepard's mind is the cultural knowledge of a Prothean: the archetypes, biological...2008, BioWare, Mass Effect (Science Fiction), Redwood City: Electronic Arts, →ISBN, →OCLC, PC, scene: Protheans: Cipher Codex entry
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.1990, Martin L[itchfield] West, “Manuscripts”, in Ernst Heitsch, Ludwig Koenen, Reinhold Merkelbach, Clemens Zintzen, editors, Studies in Aeschylus (Beiträge zur Altertumskunde [Contributions to...

Verb

archetype (third-person singular simple present archetypes, present participle archetyping, simple past and past participle archetyped)

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...1992, ASNE: Proceedings of the 1992 Convention of the American Society of Newspaper Editors, Easton, Pa.: American Society of Newspaper Editors, →OCLC, page 21
- These stereotypes of indigenous peoples implied obvious roles for the associated Europeans—heirs to the Dying, bleaching agents to the Whitening. But the interaction of conceptions of Us and Them went further, through archetyping and anti-typing. Maoris were sometimes archetyped or idealized, as...1997, James Belich, “Myth, Race, and Identity in New Zealand”, in The New Zealand Journal of History, volume 31, number 1, Auckland: University of Auckland, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 11

archetype meaning in Hindi, Tamil, Malayalam and Vietnamese

archetype in Hindi

original model of which all other similar concepts, objects, or persons are merely copied, derivative, emulated, or patterned: आद्यरूप ādyarūp, आद्यप्ररूप ādyaprarūp, आदिरूप ādirūp, आदिप्ररूप ādiprarūp

archetype in Malayalam

quintessence, essence, typification: വാർപ്പുമാതൃക, പ്രഥമമാതൃക, പ്രാക്തനരൂപം, പ്രാഗ്രൂപം, മാതൃക, മാതൃകാരൂപം

archetype in Vietnamese

original model of which all other similar concepts, objects, or persons are merely copied, derivative, emulated, or patterned: nguyên mẫu, nguyên hình

Examples of archetype in a sentence

His manners, however, are of a much more engaging nature than thoſe of his archetype.1790 June, “Art. VIII. Ethelinde, or, The Recluse of the Lake. By Charlotte Smith. 12mo. 5 Vols. 15s. sewed. Cadell. 1789. [book review]”...
Now these plans, models, original patterns, existing in God's mind before He made a single plant or a single animal, are what we mean by Archetypes.1861 April, “Article I.—Archetypes.”, in E[zekiel] G[ilman] Robinson, editor, The Christian Review, volume XXVII, number CIV, Rochester...
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.1968, C[arl] G[ustav] Jung, “Archetypes of the Collective Unconscious”, in R[ichard] F[rancis] C[arrington] Hull, transl., The Archetypes...
The 'cipher' needed to comprehend the images implanted in Shepard's mind is the cultural knowledge of a Prothean: the archetypes, biological instincts, and common experiences universal to the race.2008, BioWare, Mass Effect (Science Fiction), Redwood City: Electronic Arts, →ISBN, →OCLC, PC, scene: Protheans: Cipher Codex entry:

All 37 example sentences with archetype

Synonyms of archetype

Forms of archetype

Noun
plural	archetypes
Verb
third-person singular present	archetypes
present participle	archetyping
past participle	archetyped
past	archetyped

Plural of archetype: archetypes

Origin of archetype

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”)).

Words formed from archetype

Questions about archetype

What does archetype mean?: Archetype means an original model of which all other similar concepts, objects, or persons are merely copied, derivative, emulated, or patterned.
What is archetype in Hindi?: Archetype in Hindi is आद्यरूप (ādyarūp), आद्यप्ररूप (ādyaprarūp), आदिरूप (ādirūp). See Archetype meaning in Hindi.
How do you use archetype in a sentence?: His manners, however, are of a much more engaging nature than thoſe of his archetype.
What part of speech is archetype?: Archetype can be a noun or a verb.
How do you pronounce archetype?: Archetype is pronounced /ˈɑːkɪtaɪp/ (UK).
What is the plural of archetype?: The plural of archetype is archetypes.

Words near archetype in the dictionary

Adapted from Wiktionary: archetype (page history and authors); archetype (Tamil Wiktionary) (page history and authors); archetype (Olam, E.K. Kurup corpus) (dataset and license). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated: 2026-09-02

Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: en-au-archetype.ogg.

Cite this entry: “archetype.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/archetype. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.