auld lang syne

[ awldlang zahyn, sahyn ]

/ ˈɔld læŋ ˈzaɪn, ˈsaɪn /

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See synonyms for auld lang syne on Thesaurus.com

noun Scot. and North England.

old times, especially times fondly remembered.

old or long friendship.

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Origin of auld lang syne

First recorded in 1660–80; from Scots: literally, “old long since,” i.e., “old long-ago (days)”

Words nearby auld lang syne

auk, auklet, au lait, Aulard, auld, auld lang syne, Auld Reekie, aulic, aulic council, Aulis, Auliye-Ata

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use auld lang syne in a sentence

Auld lang syne” is Scottish-Gaelic for “old long since,” or, more idiomatically, “days gone by” or “time long past.
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Take this verse by famous Scottish poet Robert Burns in his famous Scottish poem “Auld Lang Syne.”
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When she stands by the bedside of a dying Victor McLaglen and sings “Auld Lang Syne,” it is an occasion for real tears.
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My faither was in it when he was nine, but you're no' allowed to gang doon now till you are twelve year auld.
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He didna stay very lang, and gaed awa' saying he'd come back again.
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He had been workin' on the top o' some auld workin's, an' I suppose they wadna ken, an' it fell in.
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"Ay, an' it's a gran' price for onybody wha kens aboot it," said auld Jamie Lauder.
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Lang bleats for one, and I thought I might address it to him as a kind of open letter.
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British Dictionary definitions for auld lang syne

auld lang syne

/ (ˈɔːld læŋ ˈsəɪn, ˈsaɪn, ˈzaɪn) /

noun

old times; times past, esp those remembered with affection or nostalgia

Word Origin for auld lang syne

Scottish, literally: old long since

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Cultural definitions for auld lang syne

“Auld Lang Syne”

[ (awld lang zeyen, seyen) ]

A traditional Scottish song, customarily sung on New Year's Eve; the title means “Time Long Past.” The words, passed down orally, were recorded by the eighteenth-century poet Robert Burns. The song begins:

Should auld [old] acquaintance be forgot,
And never brought to min'?
Should auld acquaintance be forgot,
And auld lang syne!

auld lang syne

Origin of auld lang syne

Words nearby auld lang syne

Words related to auld lang syne

How to use auld lang syne in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for auld lang syne

Word Origin for auld lang syne

Cultural definitions for auld lang syne