historic

adjective

his·​tor·​ic hi-ˈstȯr-ik 

-ˈstär-

: historical: such as

a

: famous or important in history

historic battlefields

b

: having great and lasting importance

a historic occasion

c

: known or established in the past

historic interest rates

d

: dating from or preserved from a past time or culture

historic buildings

historic artifacts

Did you know?

historic or historical?

Do you experience a slight pause before using either of these words as you try to remember which one is correct and whether it should be preceded by an or a? If so, you’re not alone, for many people find this pair particularly tricky. Historic and historical are both occasionally found preceded by an, since the initial h in each word was formerly left unpronounced. Now this h is heard, and a is far more common than an (by a ratio of about 4 to 1 in American English).

Historic and historical have been used interchangeably by many writers, even in recent years. If you would like to avoid being corrected, however, use historical for matters relating to history (the historical society), and historic to refer to things having great and lasting importance (a historic occasion).

Synonyms

• big
• consequential
• earth-shattering
• earthshaking
• eventful
• important
• major
• material
• meaningful
• momentous
• monumental
• much
• significant
• substantial
• tectonic
• weighty

Examples of historic in a Sentence

It's wonderful to see so many people here on this historic occasion.

She returned safely from her historic flight into space.

The court made a historic decision last week.

They know of many historic volcanic eruptions in the area.

the historic importance of the river

Recent Examples on the Web

Historic Haven New Haven, home to Yale University, offers a blend of historic charm and progressive energy. —Joshua Alston, USA Today, 24 May 2025

After a historic collapse in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals to the Indiana Pacers, the Knicks let Game 2 slip through their fingers, in a 114-109 loss. —Jackson Thompson, FOXNews.com, 24 May 2025

Like Venice, Barcelona and other historic European cities, Bruges has been struggling to cope with overtourism. —Lilit Marcus, CNN Money, 24 May 2025

The historic residence in the Poverty Ridge neighborhood now awaits its next caretaker. —David Caraccio, Sacbee.com, 24 May 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1594, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for historic

• caloric
• dysphoric
• euphoric
• folkloric
• plethoric
• pyloric
• anaphoric
• metaphoric
• meteoric
• paregoric
• prehistoric
• pyrophoric

Kids Definition

historic

adjective

his·​tor·​ic his-ˈtȯr-ik 

-ˈtär-

1

: historical sense 1

2

: famous in history

historic events