was dated vs is dated

Both "was dated" and "is dated" are correct, but they are used in different contexts. "Was dated" is used when referring to something that was done in the past, while "is dated" is used when describing something that is currently old-fashioned or out of date.

Last updated: March 25, 2024 • 3740 views

This phrase is correct when referring to something that was done in the past.

"was dated"

Use "was dated" when talking about the time when something was done or created in the past.

Examples:

The letter was dated last week.
The building was dated to the 18th century.

Show examples from the web [+]

The (first) appraisal was dated 26 April 2001 and concluded that the market value was NOK 795 Million.
Julie, the internet search that collin did on your family was dated five days ago.
This was dated a week before Mom died.
This was dated 3 years after her abduction.
The letter was dated almost a year ago.
The letter was dated before I went away.
This was dated July 19, 1942.
It was dated, signed and initialled at the bottom of both sides of the page.
The original Commission proposal was dated April last year, but after that nothing happened.
I said that this report has been produced with difficulty, because the first document was dated 21 May and the Commission's agreement did not arrive until 9 October.
However, the Commission cannot share this view: the contract between CWP and its supplier was dated July 1998, whereas the project was conceived in 1996.
The problem is, Eric, this was dated two years before you even brought your big case.
The 'third' set of audited financial statements was dated 15 May 2014 whereas the verification visit at the company's premises took place on 29-30 May 2014.
In the present case, the first information request sent by the Commission to the French authorities concerning the special business tax scheme applicable to FT was dated 28 June 2001.
It was dated Portia's 21st birthday.
It was dated a few days before she died.
That letter was dated a week before she was killed.
It's the same as the cover letter, which was dated three days ago.
The letter was dated four days ago, but it wasn't sent until yesterday.
And that was dated the day he died.

Alternatives:

had been dated
was marked with a date
was assigned a date
was recorded as being from a certain time
was established on a specific date

This phrase is correct when describing something that is currently old-fashioned or out of date.

"is dated"

Use "is dated" when referring to something that is no longer fashionable or relevant in the present.

Examples:

The design of the house is dated and needs a modern touch.
Her style of clothing is dated and needs an update.

Show examples from the web [+]

This is dated July 12th to July 19th.
This entry is dated April 14, 1860.
This one is dated several months ago.
The serial number is dated 1995.
The document is dated 1 September 2007 and describes the serious distress and concerns of Turkish Protestants about the absence of freedom of religion.
However, the most recent report by the Supervisory Committee available on the OLAF website, which is dated December 2004, covers only the period to July 2004, since when three years have elapsed.
- Our coin is dated 1714.
This order is dated November 17th.
This informal document is dated 20 September 2005.
The last one I have here is dated July 2009.
The project attached to the DPÚK's submission is dated June 2001 and was thus not relevant at the time of the assessed measures.
This communication is dated 25 November, but only today, nearly four weeks later, is there an early alert.
The letter is dated 12 September 2006 and reportedly contains criticism of the shortcomings of Romanian anti-corruption legislation.
This is dated less than a month before they sent their agents in.
The tape is dated 17th May, 2005, but she was never charged.
Go ahead and tell them about the angry letter that you wrote to Alison... which is dated, by the way, three days before she disappeared.
The COM document, which is the proposal of the Commission for the transposition to communitarian law, is dated 8 th of March of 2010.
The protocol itself is dated 6 April 2006, though its annexes were signed on 4 April 2006.
This document, entitled the Crimen Sollicitationis Instruction, is addressed to all Patriarchs, Archbishops, Bishops and other diocesan Ordinaries even of the Oriental Rite on the manner of proceeding in cases of solicitation and is dated 16 March 1962.
This manuscript is dated Thursday, August 7 th, 1961, but farther down on the page there are three letters:

Alternatives:

is out of date
is old-fashioned
is behind the times
is antiquated
is obsolete

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was dated vs is dated

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