nostalgia
Americannoun
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a wistful desire to return in thought or in fact to a former time in one's life, to one's home or homeland, or to one's family and friends; a sentimental yearning for the happiness of a former place or time.
a nostalgia for his college days.
-
something that elicits or displays nostalgia.
noun
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a yearning for the return of past circumstances, events, etc
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the evocation of this emotion, as in a book, film, etc
-
longing for home or family; homesickness
Other Word Forms
- nostalgic adjective
Etymology
Origin of nostalgia
First recorded in 1770–80; from New Latin, from Greek nóst(os) “a return home” + -algia -algia
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.
On the emerging side of the artistic spectrum is Andrew J. Park, whose airbrush paintings at Anthony Gallery blend surrealism, nostalgia and outdated technology with cutting-edge digital advances.
How to know that millennials are officially old enough to feel nostalgia?
From MarketWatch
For a long time, it looked as if that might have been written off as nostalgia and forever lost to history.
From Los Angeles Times
Despite the obvious medical concerns, and the chronically inert action, there remains sizable public nostalgia for watching fighters who are too old to fight.
Servin remembers with nostalgia that his son was a football fan.
From Barron's
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.
