reminisce
Americanverb (used without object)
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reminisces,
present (3rd person singular)
-
reminisced,
past participle, past
-
reminiscing
present participle
verb
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
reminiscesimple
-
reminiscessimple
-
have reminiscedperfect
-
has reminiscedperfect
-
am reminiscingprogressive
-
are reminiscingprogressive
-
is reminiscingprogressive
-
have been reminiscingperfect progressive
-
has been reminiscingperfect progressive
Past
-
reminiscedsimple
-
had reminiscedperfect
-
was reminiscingprogressive
-
were reminiscingprogressive
-
had been reminiscingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of reminisce
First recorded in 1820–30; back formation from reminiscence
Explanation
Reminisce is a dreamy way of saying "remember the past." If you're swapping old stories with friends and remembering all the silly things you used to do, then you're reminiscing. Reminiscing is all about happy recollections and thinking back to stories from the past. It's hard to reminisce about the old days with someone you don't know very well or haven't known very long, since a key part of reminiscing is a shared history. But just about anyone can reminisce about going elementary school, learning to tie shoelaces, or getting that first job.
Vocabulary lists containing reminisce
List 2
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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.
See Examples For:
But those who want to can pick up the receiver to say out loud the emotions they’ve bottled inside — a chance to reflect, reminisce and, in a way, connect.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 6, 2026
In interspersed interviews, Knoxville and his pals reminisce about their time together with a distinct wistfulness.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 29, 2026
People don’t just reminisce about their favorite evening at The Cheesecake Factory.
From Salon ● Jun. 22, 2026
"The games make us reminisce about our childhood... not only can we be healthier, but we can also enjoy that nostalgic feeling with our inner child," Akira said.
From Barron's ● Jun. 15, 2026
“Not the time to reminisce, Reggie. Not the time.”
From "Here to Stay" by Sara Farizan
Early in his extraordinary new documentary, “Remake,” seasoned filmmaker Ross McElwee reminisces with his young son, Adrian, about their travels together, presenting McElwee’s films at various festivals around the world.
From Salon ● Jul. 24, 2026
She reminisces on a childhood growing up in a repressive household during the 1960s, when second-wave feminism and the women’s liberation movement were just starting to achieve legitimacy.
From Salon ● Mar. 14, 2026
The artist smiles as she reminisces about those early experiments.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 10, 2026
She also reminisces about how Mar-a-Lago is where her father gave Barron swim lessons, Donald Trump played golf with Barron, and Barron took his first tennis lessons with her.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 31, 2026
Naano gushes as she reminisces about this most wonderful day.
From "Zara’s Rules for Record-Breaking Fun" by Hena Khan
Washington Post columnist Marc Thiessen reminisced about working two jobs, living with roommates and eating ramen after college.
From Salon ● Aug. 13, 2026
Walking through, Hajj Ali reminisced on her home in Nabatieh al-Fawqa, which she was only able to visit once after an April truce that ultimately failed to stop the fighting.
From Barron's ● Jul. 19, 2026
Others were pulled back to their lab days: “Considering volunteering my services as I have unintentionally killed Desmodesmus cultures many times,” one scientist reminisced on Bluesky.
From Slate ● Jun. 27, 2026
BBC Scotland news correspondent Jamie McIvor reminisced about fond memories of working with Hayes as a teenager on a viewer access programme in the late 1980s.
From BBC ● Dec. 1, 2025
For the rest of their lives, the former West Computers reminisced with one another and with the East Computers and the engineers they worked with.
From "Hidden Figures" by Margot Lee Shetterly
Whether Musk was supporting SpaceX’s valuation or reminiscing about Tesla is unclear.
From Barron's ● Jun. 2, 2026
The pair linked up on a video call arranged by the BBC, reminiscing about the Swap Shop appearance and catching up on the years since.
From BBC ● Apr. 7, 2026
In a matter of minutes, the 24-year-olds found themselves in the thick of its “Star Wars” DVD and Blu-ray collection, reminiscing about the special features they enjoyed as kids.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 23, 2026
Former “Grey’s Anatomy” showrunner Krista Vernoff shared an Instagram post fondly reminiscing about when Dane returned to the set in 2021 to film a dream sequence featuring his character, who died in Season 9.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 20, 2026
Now they were reminiscing together as old friends who had just reunited.
From "Son" by Lois Lowry
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.
