mists of time

mists of time pl (plural only)

1. (idiomatic, also poetic, literary) Any time so long ago that history is no longer clear, as though lost in a mist or fog.

   lost in the mists of time

   • 1979 October 12, Douglas Adams, chapter 15, in The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, London: Pan Books, →ISBN, page 89:

     Far back in the mists of ancient time, in the great and glorious days of the former Galactic Empire, life was wild, rich and largely tax free.

• sands of time
• dawn of time
• time immemorial

• “the mists of time”, in Cambridge English Dictionary, Cambridge, Cambridgeshire: Cambridge University Press, 1999–present.
• “lost in the mists of time” in Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English, Longman.
• “lost in the mists of time”, in Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1996–present.