Nabokov

American  

[nuh-baw-kuhf, nab-uh-kawf, -kof, nuh-baw-kuhf] / nəˈbɔ kəf, ˈnæb əˌkɔf, -ˌkɒf, nʌˈbɔ kəf /

noun

1. Vladimir Vladimirovich 1899–1977, U.S. novelist, short-story writer, and poet, born in Russia.

---

Nabokov British  

/ ˌnæbəˈkəʊvɪən, nəˈbɒkɒf, ˈnæbəˌkɒf /

noun

1. Vladimir Vladimirovich (vlaˈdimir vlaˈdimirəvitʃ). 1899–1977, US novelist, born in Russia. His works include Lolita (1955), Pnin (1957), Pale Fire (1962), and Ada (1969)

---

Other Word Forms

• Nabokovian adjective

Example Sentences

“I don’t think that an artist should bother about his audience,” Vladimir Nabokov sniffed.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 11, 2026

Yet the tale he wrote for quick cash turned out to be one of his finest: Vladimir Nabokov listed it among his half-dozen contemporary American favorites in 1972.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 17, 2025

Vladimir Nabokov flexed on both of them by using em dashes between other em dashes.

From Salon • Jun. 11, 2025

Framed as a confession by the child of a Frenchman and a Vietnamese woman, the narrator is a double agent with an unforgettable voice recalling Graham Greene and Vladimir Nabokov.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 14, 2025

Many if not most tlamatinime saw existence as Nabokov feared: “a brief crack of light between two eternities of darkness.”

From "1491" by Charles C. Mann