nostalgia
Americannoun
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a wistful desire to return in thought or in fact to a former time in one's life, to one's home or homeland, or to one's family and friends; a sentimental yearning for the happiness of a former place or time.
a nostalgia for his college days.
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something that elicits or displays nostalgia.
noun
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a yearning for the return of past circumstances, events, etc
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the evocation of this emotion, as in a book, film, etc
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longing for home or family; homesickness
Other Word Forms
- nostalgic adjective
Etymology
Origin of nostalgia
First recorded in 1770–80; from New Latin, from Greek nóst(os) “a return home” + -algia -algia
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.
It was a place that seemed wrapped in a cocoon of nostalgia.
From Los Angeles Times
But a toy’s duty to help kids — and Pixar’s obligation to milk nostalgia for every cent it’s worth — never ceases.
From Salon
Like many in Venezuela, the 68-year-old expressed nostalgia for the heyday of the Caribbean country between the 1950s and 1970s, when it was flush with oil riches.
From Barron's
It has nothing to do with knights or nostalgia.
“When I listen to ABBA’s ‘Happy New Year’ I feel this sense of nostalgia and calm and understanding.”
From Salon
Definitions 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.
