Kate Bornstein
Did you know?
The day in heyday originally had nothing to do with the kind of day that's made up of 24 hours. Heyday was first used in the first half of the 16th century as an extended form of the interjection hey, used since the 13th century to express elation or wonder, as it still often is in phrases like "hey, look at that!" The day part was most likely just an extra syllable tagged on for effect. By the end of the 16th century heyday had developed noun use with the meaning "high spirits," as when Shakespeare's Hamlet tells his mother, "You cannot call it love; for at your age / The heyday in the blood is tame …” It wasn't until the 18th century that the day syllable's resemblance to the word day likely influenced the development of the now-familiar use referring to the period when one's achievement or popularity has reached its zenith.
Examples of heyday in a Sentence
Kelsey Stiegman, Glamour, 8 Apr. 2026
Then millions of young fans who weren’t alive during his heyday discovered his music through algorithms — and everything changed.
—Hanna Wickes, Miami Herald, 8 Apr. 2026
There’s far less public attachment to the space program than in its 1960s heyday.
—Michael Peregrine, Chicago Tribune, 8 Apr. 2026
But where do probiotics—another gut-health darling that had its own heyday as the supplement du jour a few years back—come into play?
—Michele Ross, SELF, 8 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for heyday
Cite this Entry
“Heyday.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/heyday. Accessed 10 Apr. 2026.
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