déjà vu

dé·jà vu | \ ˌdā-ˌzhä-ˈvü

, -ˈvᵫ

Definition of déjà vu

1a : the illusion of remembering scenes and events when experienced for the first time

b : a feeling that one has seen or heard something before Despite a blond, swept-back mane all his own, Fonda looks startlingly like his father, Henry … . He even moves like his father, only dispelling the eerie feeling of déjà vu when he opens his mouth.— Peter Biskind

2 : something overly or unpleasantly familiar The team's poor start to the season was déjà vu for its long-suffering fans.

Examples of déjà vu in a Sentence

I entered the room and immediately felt a sense of déjà vu. When the car broke down again, it was déjà vu. The rise in housing costs is déjà vu all over again.

Recent Examples on the Web Electric as Texas looked in San Antonio, a sense of deja vu permeated this win. — Nick Moyle, ExpressNews.com, "Young guns help Texas rout Colorado, defend Alamo Bowl title," 30 Dec. 2020 Michigan State football-Maryland redux is now cancellation deja vu. — USA TODAY, "College football COVID-19 update: Michigan State football game vs. Maryland canceled again," 18 Dec. 2020 Bella Hadid stepped out today in New York City in a look that gave us deja vu. — Liana Satenstein, Vogue, "Bella Hadid Re-Wears Her Statement Playboy Pants," 23 Dec. 2020 Michigan State football-Maryland redux is now cancellation deja vu. — USA TODAY, "College football COVID-19 update: Michigan State football game vs. Maryland canceled again," 18 Dec. 2020 Michigan State football-Maryland redux is now cancellation deja vu. — Chris Solari, Detroit Free Press, "Michigan State football game vs. Maryland canceled again," 17 Dec. 2020 And some can't help but feel an impending sense of deja vu. — Keith Pandolfi, The Enquirer, "'Only going to make things worse': Greater Cincinnati restaurant owners react to another possible shutdown," 13 Nov. 2020 For Cisneros, there’s a distinct feeling of deja vu. — John Wildermuth, SFChronicle.com, "Four California House incumbents trail narrowly as votes come in," 5 Nov. 2020 For state Assemblyman Al Muratsuchi (D-Rolling Hills Estates), the debate sparks a sense of deja vu. — Teresa Watanabe, Los Angeles Times, "Affirmative action divides Asian Americans, UC’s largest overrepresented student group," 1 Nov. 2020

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'déjà vu.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.