You're probably familiar with the term status quo, Latin for "the state in which (things are right now)."

But how about the status quo ante? Even if you've never seen it before, I bet you could translate it correctly as "the state in which (things used to be in) the past."

While we're looking at the Latin ante, meaning "past, or before," let's recall some other terms that feature it:

1. An ante____ is a small room you enter first, before entering the main doors of a building. You see them in schools and department stores. (Did you say antechamber? That's correct, too!)

2. Something ante____um, literally "before the war," is related to the time before some specific war, usually the American Civil War (1861-1865). It can also mean, more generally, "very old-fashioned."

3. Even older than the above, something ante_____ian, literally "before the flood," is related to the time before the flood in the book of Genesis, the one Noah builds the ark for. But more often, it means "very, very, very old-fashioned."

(To reveal any word with blanks, give it a click.)

The phrase "status quo ante" is Latin for "the state in which things were in the past." We've used it in English since the year 1800 or so.

So, if you want to sound formal and academic, instead of saying "the way things were in the past" or "the way that people used to do things back in the day," you can say "status quo ante."

grammatical bits:

Part of speech:

Noun: "They long for the status quo ante."

Other forms: 

We've also got these closely related terms: "status quo," meaning "the current state of things;" and "status quo ante bellum," meaning "the state of things back before the war."

how to use it:

When you want to set a serious, academic tone, try reaching for a Latin phrase. Any Latin phrase! I especially like the ones that are easy to understand, like "status quo ante;" they won't annoy or confuse your listeners.

You might talk about people and actions that return to the status quo ante or revert to the status quo ante, or restore the status quo ante, or take people or societies back to the status quo ante.

And you might apply this term to serialized fiction of any kind. "No matter how many times they killed Kenny on Southpark, things returned to the status quo ante for each new episode, when he'd be alive and well." 

examples:

"In the early decades of TV, series were endless, until they ended. This was fine, since most shows essentially returned every episode to the status quo ante."
— James Poniewozik, New York Times, 13 May 2018

"Industry leaders are certainly pushing for a return to the status quo ante, where employees come together around conference tables rather than in Zoom conferences." 
— Ira Bedzow, Forbes, 7 May 2021

has this page helped you understand "status quo ante"?

Awesome, I'm glad it helped!

Thanks for letting me know!
If you have any questions about this term, please message me at Liesl@HiloTutor.com.

study it:

Explain the meaning of "status quo ante" without saying "the way things used to be" or "the way things were before."

try it out:

Fill in the blanks: "(Some particular song, poem, show, book, or other creation) longs for the status quo ante of (some time period), when (things were easier or better in some way."

Example: "Taylor Swift's 'Never Grow Up' longs for the status quo ante of childhood, when everything is funny and nothing is heartbreaking."

If you like, use this space to write. (To save your work, copy and paste it into an email or a document.)

before you review, play:

Try to spend 20 seconds or more on the game below. Don’t skip straight to the review—first, let your working memory empty out.

Our game for this month is the Game of Venery! 

Longtime readers may recognize this game from 2019, when we played with terms from James Lipton's book An Exaltation of Larks. This time, we’ll play with terms from Daniel E. Meyers's online Collective Noun Catalog.

To play, check out the two templates below, and have fun filling them in and sharing your inventions with your family. You can be as lofty, silly, or bawdy as you like. To see the way the terms actually appear in Meyers’s catalog, scroll to the bottom of the issue.

Try these today:

1. an exaltation of _____ (besides larks)

2. a/an _____ of fruitcakes

review this term:

1. The opposite of STATUS QUO ANTE is

A. STATUS QUO: the way things are right now.
B. STATU-QUO-ITE: a person who perpetuates the current situation.
C. STATUS SYMBOL: a thing that indicates a person's high rank in society, such as a luxury car.

2. Those who push for new restrictions on reproductive rights seem determined to _____ status quo ante.

A. lift society into a
B. take society back to the
C. push society forward for a

Answers to the review questions: 1. A 2. B Answers to the game questions: Your invented terms of venery can be anything you like! Here are the ones from the catalog: 1. an exaltation of fireworks 2. an indestructibility of fruitcakes And here are mine: 1. an exaltation of vocal harmonies 2. a sheepishness of fruitcakes

a final word:

I hope you're enjoying Make Your Point. It's made with love. I'm Liesl Johnson, a reading and writing tutor on a mission to explore, illuminate, and celebrate words. From my blog: On vocabulary...       36 ways to study words.       Why we forget words, & how to remember them.       How to use sophisticated words without being awkward. On writing...       How to improve any sentence.       How to motivate our kids to write.       How to stop procrastinating and start writing.       How to bulk up your writing when you have to meet a word count. From my heart: a profound thanks to the generous patrons, donors, and sponsors that make it possible for me to write these emails. If you'd like to be a patron or a donor, please click here. If you'd like to be a sponsor and include your ad in an issue, please contact me at Liesl@HiloTutor.com. A disclaimer: When I write definitions, I use plain language and stick to the words' common, useful applications. If you're interested in authoritative and multiple definitions of words, I encourage you to check a dictionary. Also, because I'm American, I stick to American English when I share words' meanings, usage, and pronunciations; these elements sometimes vary across world Englishes.