A word which does not literally refer directly to the vanished objects but can work in the example phrase by metonymy is memories. A web search for just memories now turns up many prior examples of this usage. E.g.
Eastman Kodak and Polaroid are just memories now.
from Kirby Engineering: West Coast Project by George Clapper. The companies are not literally memories, but since memories are all that remain* he can figuratively say that they are.
* Not literally true either, but that's not the point.
Answer from Peter Taylor on Stack ExchangeQuora
quora.com › What-is-the-word-for-something-that-does-not-exist
What is the word for something that does not exist? - Quora
Answer (1 of 19): “Non-existent, imaginary, imagined, unreal, fictional, fictitious, made up, invented, hypothetical, suppositional, fancied, fanciful, fantastic, fantasy, mythical, mythological, legendary, illusory, illusive, hallucinatory, ...
Stack Exchange
english.stackexchange.com › questions › 180275 › word-for-does-not-exist
Word for "does not exist" - English Language & Usage Stack Exchange
The word you are probably after is nonexistent. If the thing used to exist but no longer does, then you could also use nonextant, although that doesn't seem to be that case in your example.
Merriam-Webster
merriam-webster.com › thesaurus › nonexistence
NONEXISTENCE Synonyms: 22 Similar and Opposite Words | Merriam-Webster Thesaurus
Synonyms for NONEXISTENCE: nothingness, unreality, inexistence, nonbeing, absence, lack, potentiality, dearth; Antonyms of NONEXISTENCE: existence, reality, subsistence, actuality, corporeality, thingness, genuineness, corporality
WordHippo
wordhippo.com › what-is › another-word-for › no_longer_in_existence.html
What is another word for "no longer in existence"?
Synonyms for no longer in existence include defunct, bygone, extinct, gone, done, dead, expired, bypast, departed and vanished. Find more similar words at wordhippo.com!
Vocabulary.com
vocabulary.com › dictionary › nonexistent
Nonexistent - Definition, Meaning & Synonyms | Vocabulary.com
Something that's nonexistent doesn't really exist. When your cat hisses at her reflection in the mirror, she's attacking a nonexistent enemy. The adjective nonexistent describes something that's not real. Your nonexistent problems are only in your imagination, for example, and you may pretend to answer a nonexistent phone call to avoid an awkward conversation with an acquaintance at the post office. The word ...
Top answer 1 of 3
2
A word which does not literally refer directly to the vanished objects but can work in the example phrase by metonymy is memories. A web search for just memories now turns up many prior examples of this usage. E.g.
Eastman Kodak and Polaroid are just memories now.
from Kirby Engineering: West Coast Project by George Clapper. The companies are not literally memories, but since memories are all that remain* he can figuratively say that they are.
* Not literally true either, but that's not the point.
2 of 3
2
Hard to think of a noun but there are plenty of adjectives, for better or worse.
Obsolete? Extinct? Nonextant?
https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/nonextant: adjective : no longer existing or accessible through loss or destruction e.g., nonextant records
Reddit
reddit.com › r/words › i need a word for something that does and does not exist at the same time
r/words on Reddit: I need a word for something that does and does not exist at the same time
March 5, 2023 -
In short I’m writing a story about a thing or a person that exists but does not at the same time. I have scoured the web and come up empty handed so any help would be great!
Thesaurus.com
thesaurus.com › browse › nonexistent
175 Synonyms & Antonyms for NONEXISTENT | Thesaurus.com
Find 175 different ways to say NONEXISTENT, along with antonyms, related words, and example sentences at Thesaurus.com.
Merriam-Webster
merriam-webster.com › thesaurus › nonexistent
NONEXISTENT Synonyms: 42 Similar and Opposite Words | Merriam-Webster Thesaurus
Synonyms for NONEXISTENT: absent, lacking, missing, extinct, vanished, lost, wanting, inadequate; Antonyms of NONEXISTENT: present, existent, active, current, alive, living, thriving, common
Macmillan Dictionary
macmillandictionary.com › thesaurus-category › british › non-existence
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Reddit
reddit.com › r/words › is there a word that describes words nonexistent things?
r/words on Reddit: Is there a word that describes words nonexistent things?
October 13, 2024 -
Much like how pronouns classify words that can function by themselves as noun phrases and that refers either to the participants in the discourse (e.g., I, you ) or to someone or something mentioned elsewhere in the discourse. Is there a word to describe "made up words" like Unicorn, Dragon, etc. Concepts that don't exist in the real world?
Top answer 1 of 26
8
Conceptual.
2 of 26
8
Are you looking for a noun or an adjective? For adjectives: in addition to u/DedBattery 's suggestions, perhaps fictitious, chimerical, invented, imagined, concocted, or unreal? If you're looking for a noun, what about: fictions, figments of the imagination, phantasms, chimeras, myths, inventions, or concoctions?
Cambridge Dictionary
dictionary.cambridge.org › us › thesaurus › no-longer-in-existence
NO LONGER IN EXISTENCE - 13 Synonyms and Antonyms - Cambridge English
Click on any word or phrase to go to its thesaurus page. ... Synonyms for no longer in existence from Random House Roget's College Thesaurus, Revised and Updated Edition © 2000 Random House, Inc. ... a spirit that looks exactly like a living person, or someone who looks exactly like someone else but who is not related to that person About this
YourDictionary
thesaurus.yourdictionary.com › home › nonexistence
Nonexistence Synonyms: 7 Synonyms and Antonyms for Nonexistence | YourDictionary.com
Synonyms for NONEXISTENCE: nothingness, nonbeing, nihility, negation, nothing, nonentity; Antonyms for NONEXISTENCE: existence.
Quora
quora.com › What-do-you-call-a-word-which-does-not-exist-any-more-Extinct-Extinct-is-not-accepted-as-the-correct-equivalent-for-words-that-do-not-exist-So-what
What do you call a word which does not exist any more? Extinct? Extinct is not accepted as the correct equivalent for words that do not exist So what? - Quora
Answer (1 of 17): There is a slight misunderstanding in your question, at least when it comes to English. So long as we have attested documentation, for example, a word’s use in existing if ancient documents, or later recording of oral usage from earlier periods, a word isn’t extinct.
Quora
quora.com › What-is-the-word-that-describes-something-that-was-formerly-there-but-is-no-longer-there
What is the word that describes something that was formerly there, but is no longer there? - Quora
Answer (1 of 9): I like "erstwhile" too. However specifically, if something was formerly there, but is now no longer there, then it will depend on whether there is any evidence remaining for its original existence. If there were no fossils, we would not be able to deduce the existence of dinosa...
TheStoryThatMatters
thestorythatmatters.com › post › a-word-for-something-that-doesn-t-exist
A word for something that doesn’t exist
January 24, 2021 - She asked “Why do we have a word for something that doesn’t exist?” That question got me thinking. We have words for things that we don’t love or hate, for what we don’t want to become, for the unknown, the infinite, and the eternal.
WordHippo
wordhippo.com › what-is › another-word-for › not_existing.html
What is another word for "not existing"?
Synonyms for not existing include dead, departed, deceased, late, lifeless, perished, fallen, inanimate, demised and lost. Find more similar words at wordhippo.com!
Thesaurus.com
thesaurus.com › browse › not existing
44 Synonyms & Antonyms for NOT EXISTING | Thesaurus.com
Find 44 different ways to say NOT EXISTING, along with antonyms, related words, and example sentences at Thesaurus.com.
Thisworddoesnotexist
thisworddoesnotexist.com
This Word Does Not Exist
a word that does not exist; it was invented, defined and used by a machine learning algorithm. a word that probably exists; with an alternative definition made by a machine learning algorithm.
WordHippo
wordhippo.com › what-is › another-word-for › nonexistent.html
What is another word for nonexistent? | Nonexistent Synonyms - WordHippo Thesaurus
Synonyms for nonexistent include missing, lacking, wanting, absent, inexistent, non-existent, not present, not to be found, unavailable and short. Find more similar words at wordhippo.com!