reminisce
Americanverb (used without object)
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reminisces,
present (3rd person singular)
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reminisced,
past participle, past
-
reminiscing
present participle
verb
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
reminiscesimple
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reminiscessimple
-
have reminiscedperfect
-
has reminiscedperfect
-
am reminiscingprogressive
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are reminiscingprogressive
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is reminiscingprogressive
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have been reminiscingperfect progressive
-
has been reminiscingperfect progressive
Past
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reminiscedsimple
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had reminiscedperfect
-
was reminiscingprogressive
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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
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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
They reminisce about the brown bread: those sweet, dark little wheat loaves scented with honey, molasses, cocoa powder and espresso.
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
With a twelve-hour flight ahead of me, I have plenty of time to reminisce about the summer.
From "The Freedom Writers Diary" by The Freedom Writers
As the Tartan Army reminisces about those heady June days in Boston and Miami, a debate is emerging:
From BBC ● Jul. 14, 2026
Tracye, who describes herself as the tomboy of the group, reminisces on being dressed as what she calls a little jester one year.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 7, 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
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
“In 2019, we were paying under $100 per show” to be on the floor, Scott reminisced.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 24, 2026
Washington Post columnist Marc Thiessen reminisced about working two jobs, living with roommates and eating ramen after college.
From Salon ● Aug. 13, 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
"Low plastic stool, cheap but delicious noodles, cold Hanoi beer," former US president Barack Obama reminisced about a meal he shared there with late chef Anthony Bourdain in 2016.
From Barron's ● Jun. 2, 2026
He reminisced about walking down the street with my mom to the Super 99, the dust blowing up everywhere, the heat pounding down, and about looking for crabs between the rocks along the bay.
From "The Book of Unknown Americans" by Cristina Henríquez
Casado, a Stanford University Ph.D. in computer science, remembers attending Hot Chips, an annual Stanford semiconductor conference, in the early 2000s, when it was largely populated by industry retirees reminiscing about the good old days.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 31, 2026
Whether Musk was supporting SpaceX’s valuation or reminiscing about Tesla is unclear.
From Barron's ● Jun. 2, 2026
And there is always a healthy dollop of nostalgia when reminiscing about kits - those hazy childhood memories relived through a golden filter.
From BBC ● Jun. 1, 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
“We had some tough times, all right,” says Mrs. Clare, reminiscing.
From "In Cold Blood" by Truman Capote
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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.
