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.
A remake of 1990s action-adventure classic "The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time", which comes out Thursday, has sparked nostalgic fan excitement.
From Barron's ● Nov. 5, 2026
Stop-motion is a great way to generate a nostalgic feel during the holidays and to stand out from obviously machine-generated work.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 2, 2026
Because Carpenter reaches for all of the concession-stand classics — M&Ms, Red Vines, Hershey’s bars — they wanted to incorporate fun, nostalgic, textural elements.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 27, 2026
But it also has a purposeful solidity, announced by a snippet of an interview with jazz legend Chick Corea that leads into the nostalgic “Summer Clothes.”
From Salon ● Oct. 23, 2026
“Alain-Fournier is your first true master. He is nostalgic and tragic and enchantible and he aches and you will ache too and best of everything, he is true.”
From "Black Swan Green" by David Mitchell
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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.
