has-been

English · Français

AI In plain words

Writing a short explanation…

Written by a house AI from the entry below, in your language. The entry itself is the source.

has-been

/ˈhæz.biːn/ UK
/ˈhæz.bɪn/ US
/-bɛn/ US

noun has-beens · has been · hasbeen

derogatory, informal A person, especially one who was formerly popular or influential, who continues in their field after their popularity or effectiveness has peaked and is now in decline. When the aforesaid alderman or another wishes to express mild contemptuosity for his fellows and himself in future I would suggest “old fossils” or “old has beens,” or “old fogies,” then the Sir Galahads that are always riding—or driving—about in this progressive dorp will not have any cause to comp

adjective has been · hasbeen

derogatory, informal Of or pertaining to someone or something that was once popular, successful or important but is no longer considered so.

Translations

Every language

adj person declining in popularity or effectiveness

Español	ha-sido
中文	一度有名的人物 yīdù yǒumíng de rénwù, 過氣名人 /过气名人 guòqì míngrén
Português	ex-famoso
Français	has-been
Deutsch	ehemalig
Русский	челове́к, потеря́вший былу́ю сла́ву čelovék, poterjávšij bylúju slávu

Talk about this word

Cite this

MLA

"has-been." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/has-been. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

has-been. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/has-been

Chicago

"has-been." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/has-been.

BibTeX

@misc{has_been_2026,
  title = {has-been},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/has-been},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}