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
-
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:
Its title is taken from the name of a New York club of considerable legend, and Madonna uses the setting to reminisce about her wild days in this milieu.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 7, 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
"Also to reminisce about people who maybe didn't survive cardiovascular disease and being able to raise awareness and educate."
From BBC ● Apr. 9, 2026
While my mom continues to reminisce, I reach for my guitar and strum a few notes in a minor key that have a melancholy edge to them.
From "Across So Many Seas" by Ruth Behar
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
"I remember vividly reading it on the 273 bus to Ealing from my home in Ruislip, when I was about 11 or 12 years old," he reminisces.
From BBC ● Jul. 13, 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
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
As an example, he reminisced about his own first visit to Disneyland more than 40 years ago.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 18, 2026
In his third year of a music degree, 26-year-old guitarist Daniel Lukusa reminisced about how much better the rumba played on repeat in his family home was.
From Barron's ● Feb. 18, 2026
On Wednesday at the Saudi investment forum, Trump told Musk, “you’re so lucky I’m with you” and reminisced about his past conversations with the Tesla chief executive.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 20, 2025
But of all the secret punishments that Chacko tormented Mammachi with, the worst and most mortifying of all was when he reminisced about Margaret Kochamma.
From "The God of Small Things" by Arundhati Roy
Whether Musk was supporting SpaceX’s valuation or reminiscing about Tesla is unclear.
From Barron's ● Jun. 2, 2026
Stacy is doing plenty of reminiscing but it isn’t about her kids; she’s searching for a way through her pain and into a life on her own terms.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 21, 2026
He shuffles through them, reminiscing about his parents, siblings and cousins.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 18, 2026
Her new show finds the artist reminiscing about "what you would have done differently, what you regret" and, she added, what you would do differently "if you had another chance".
From BBC ● Feb. 26, 2026
“So the stronger the relationship, the more vivid the flowers. Quick, start reminiscing about positive things!”
From "Kwame Crashes the Underworld" by Craig Kofi Farmer
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.
