souvenir
[soo-vuh-neer, soo-vuh-neer]
- a usually small and relatively inexpensive article given, kept, or purchased as a reminder of a place visited, an occasion, etc.; memento.
- a memory.
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Origin of souvenir
1765–75; < French, noun use of (se) souvenir to remember < Latin subvenīre to come to mind, equivalent to sub- sub- + venīre to come
Synonyms
See more synonyms for souvenir on Thesaurus.com1. reminder, keepsake, token.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for souvenir
Contemporary Examples
And more than anything, I wanted a souvenir for my father, so I rolled him back, and he had gold teeth.
After the ceremony, the Greek gave back the ten grand and kept what was left of the dollar for a souvenir.
We stop at a souvenir stand to buy buttons that proclaim I RODE IT!
The Stacks: The Inimitable Albert Brooks Caught at the Dawn of His Movie CareerPaul Slansky
April 13, 2014
He then jokes about the legal risks of keeping the butt as a souvenir for back home.
She lived out her life selling his clothes to souvenir hunters and people like that.
Historical Examples
Wiggle appeared to claim the locust as a souvenir of the scout's magic.
Pee-wee HarrisPercy Keese Fitzhugh
I'd like to keep it for a souvenir, but I'm afraid you need it!
Alice AdamsBooth Tarkington
What souvenir of a great man can compete with the knocker of his door?
"I am culling a souvenir, madame," said he, plucking a moss-ross as the lady passed.
The Fortunes Of GlencoreCharles James Lever
That's right; always keep your word, and take this trifle as a souvenir of me.
The Memoires of Casanova, CompleteJacques Casanova de Seingalt
souvenir
- an object that recalls a certain place, occasion, or person; memento
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- Australian and NZ euphemistic, slang to steal or keep (something, esp a small article) for one's own use; purloin
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Word Origin
C18: from French, from (se) souvenir to remember, from Latin subvenīre to come to mind, from sub- up to + venīre to come
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Word Origin and History for souvenir
n.
1775, "a remembrance or memory," from French souvenir (12c.), from Old French noun use of souvenir (v.) "to remember, come to mind," from Latin subvenire "come to mind," from sub- "up" (see sub-) + venire "to come" (see venue). Meaning "token of remembrance, memento" is first recorded 1782.
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper