nostalgic
Americanadjective
adjective
noun
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of nostalgic
Explanation
You feel nostalgic when you miss your childhood, people you know but haven't seen in a while or the things that bring you comfort, like the nostalgic memories you feel when you listen to the songs you loved when you were little. The adjective nostalgic is often used to describe someone who is homesick and wants to be back at home with family. It always involves a wistful memory of times that now seem better or simpler. A nostalgic feeling can involve home and family, but it can also involve a longing for long-gone moments. Even beloved things, such as old TV shows or athletes from a different era may provoke the feeling of nostalgia.
Vocabulary lists containing nostalgic
List 1
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ACT Reading Test: Words to Capture Tone, List 1
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The Lightning Thief
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Bruch’s setting, like some moments in Brian Friel’s plays, reminds us that no artists can make us nostalgic for places we’ve never been or for people we’ve never known like the Celts.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2026
Compared with the control, they described the Hinoki aroma as more relaxing, comfortable, likable, elegant, nostalgic, and woody.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 6, 2026
Clarkson joked about comments by Labour MP Jenny Riddell-Carpenter who said the Britain of country pubs and black Labradors was a "nostalgic" false memory.
From BBC ● Oct. 5, 2026
“Nothing’s ever gonna go back to how it was,” he said, with a nostalgic grin.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 21, 2026
Looking around, I wondered why Halliday, who always claimed to have had a miserable childhood, had later become so nostalgic for it.
From "Ready Player One: A Novel" by Ernest Cline
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Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
