noun
- plural of antetype; original models or prototypes that serve as patterns for later copies or representations
Usage: formal; literary
Examples
- The ancient Greek sculptures served as antetypes for Renaissance artists.
- Biblical scholars study Old Testament antetypes that prefigure New Testament events.
- The architect’s early sketches were antetypes for the final building design.
- These primitive tools are antetypes of modern instruments.
- The mythological heroes function as antetypes in comparative literature.