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.

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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)

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Other Word Forms

Derived 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

Nabokov set an impossible mark for himself and hit it, the literary equivalent of Babe Ruth’s called shot, and his book deserves to be mythologized in similar fashion.

From Salon • Dec. 18, 2025

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

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

Although Nabokov was the scion of a Russian noble family, he detested the class-bound servility ubiquitous in the land of his birth.

From "1491" by Charles C. Mann