obsoleted

Obsoleted is the past tense and past participle form of the verb to obsolete, meaning to render something obsolete or to cause it to become out of date. As a participle, it can function adjectivally to describe something that has been rendered obsolete; as a verb, it denotes the act of bringing something into obsolescence.

Etymology and related terms: The word derives from obsolete, which itself comes from Latin obsolescere, meaning to grow old or fall into disuse. The verb form to obsolete is used in formal or technical contexts to indicate that a product, standard, procedure, or practice has been superseded. The noun most commonly used to describe the condition is obsolescence, while obsolesce is another verb meaning to become obsolete.

Usage notes: In contemporary writing, obsolete is far more common as an adjective to describe something that is no longer useful or current. Obsoleted is primarily used when describing the action of causing obsolescence. In many cases, writers choose to rephrase with render obsolete or become obsolete to avoid the passive or less familiar verb obsoleted.

Examples: The old protocol was obsoleted by the new standard. The company obsoleted the legacy API in favor of a RESTful interface. The system obsolesced when new hardware was introduced.

See also: obsolescence, obsolete, obsolesce.