history

noun his·to·ry \ ˈhi-st(ə-)rē \

|Updated on: 18 Jun 2018

plural histories

1 : tale, story

2 a : a chronological record of significant events (such as those affecting a nation or institution) often including an explanation of their causes

a history of Japan

b : a treatise presenting systematically related natural phenomena (as of geography, animals, or plants)

an illustrated history of North American birds

c : an account of a patient's medical background

reviewing her medical history

d : an established record

a prisoner with a history of violence

3 : a branch of knowledge that records and explains past events

medieval history

4 a : events that form the subject matter of a history

the history of space exploration

b : events of the past

History has shown that such efforts rarely succeed.

c : one that is finished or done for

the winning streak was history

you're history

d : previous treatment, handling, or experience (as of a metal)

a history of repeated exposure to freezing temperatures

See history defined for English-language learners

See history defined for kids

Examples of history in a Sentence

I studied history in college.
a professor of medieval history
They were one of the greatest teams in history.
It was one of the most destructive storms in modern history.
It was a period in American history when most people lived and worked on farms.
The history of space exploration is a fascinating topic.
He wrote a well-known history of the British empire.
The book begins with a brief history of the Internet.

Recent Examples of history from the Web

Court records show Lindsey had an extensive criminal history involving arson, battery and theft.

— NBC News, "Orlando gunman killed four children in their sleep at beginning of standoff, police say," 15 June 2018
And 68 percent of the high school students passed their U.S. history exam, which had a 56 percent passing rate in 2013.

— Sun-Sentinel.com, "Florida releases 2018 test results for reading, math, science and social studies," 15 June 2018
Look at it this way: Indiana picked up a top-of-the-rotation player for a draft choice that history suggests is rarely any good.

— nat newell and j. michael, Indianapolis Star, "How the Pacers could trade for Kawhi Leonard," 15 June 2018
Patra's passion for football matches the history of his hometown, which hosts one of Asia's oldest football clubs, Mohun Bagan.

— sreoshi mukherjee, CNN, "Lionel Messi: Indian tea-maker creates shrine to Argentina star," 15 June 2018
The towns have long been abandoned by its former residents but remnants of their existence remain in the form of buildings, monuments and forgotten history.

— tulsi kamath, Houston Chronicle, "Creepy Texas ghost towns totally worth a road trip this summer," 15 June 2018
This decision, just one day after the President of the United States said the news media is 'Our Country's biggest enemy,' sets a low standard in the 232-year history of the newspaper.

— CBS News, "Rob Rogers, cartoonist who clashed with Post-Gazette editors, says he's been fired," 15 June 2018
The crowd had to settle for a flirtation with history in addition to seeing a couple of historic humans.

— bob brookover, Philly.com, "Vince Velasquez's flirtation with no-hitter enough to please Phillies," 14 June 2018
The state's history of racial and partisan gerrymandering dates back a quarter-century, and both parties have chalk on their hands.

— richard wolf, USA TODAY, "Divided over partisan election maps, Supreme Court could learn a lesson from divided college campus," 14 June 2018

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

Origin and Etymology of history

Middle English histoire, historie, from Anglo-French estoire, histoire, from Latin historia, from Greek, inquiry, history, from histōr, istōr knowing, learned; akin to Greek eidenai to know — more at wit

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 14th century

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year