historic

[hi-stawr-ik, -stor-]

adjective

1. well-known or important in history.

   a historic building;

   historic occasions.

   Synonyms: memorable, famed, famous, renowned, notable

2. historical.

historic

/ hɪˈstɒrɪk /

adjective

1. famous or likely to become famous in history; significant

2. a less common word for historical historical historical historical historical

3. Also: secondary. linguistics (of Latin, Greek, or Sanskrit verb tenses) referring to past time

Usage

A distinction is usually made between historic (important, significant) and historical (pertaining to history): a historic decision; a historical perspective

Other Word Forms

• nonhistoric adjective
• pseudohistoric adjective
• quasi-historic adjective
• semihistoric adjective
• superhistoric adjective
• unhistoric adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of historic¹

First recorded in 1605–15; from Latin historicus, from Greek historikós “historical, scientific,” from histor(ía) “inquiry” ( history ) + -ikos -ic

Example Sentences

In a post on X, Ecuador's interior minister John Reimberg, who said he was in Spain with police, said the capture of Chavarria was a "historic day" for his country.

Read more on BBC

Key economic reports to be canceled, delayed and damaged by historic shutdown.

Read more on MarketWatch

The blast outside the historic fort was the first such explosion in the heavily guarded city since 2011.

Read more on BBC

Towns with historic centres and narrow streets often don't have space for large outdoor bins for businesses to place their rubbish in either - so their bin bags hit the pavement.

Read more on BBC

The move comes three years after Pope Francis issued a historic apology to Canada's First Nations for the church's role in the "genocide" and suppression of indigenous identity through the residential schools programme.

Read more on BBC

Related Words

• consequential 
• extraordinary 
• famous 
• important 
• memorable 
• significant