homecoming

noun

home·​com·​ing ˈhōm-ˌkə-miŋ 

1

: a return home

a soldier's homecoming

2

: the return of a group of people usually on a special occasion to a place formerly frequented or regarded as home

especially : an annual celebration for alumni at a high school, college, or university

—often used before another noun

a homecoming rally

homecoming weekend

the annual homecoming game/dance

was elected the homecoming queen

Examples of homecoming in a Sentence

A large crowd gathered at the airport for the soldiers' homecoming.

Recent Examples on the Web

There’s a pretty fun narrative here about the homecoming of a group of gentlemen and the chaos that follows their path. —Devon Ivie, Vulture, 24 Apr. 2026

The museum itself feels purpose-built for a show of this scale and ambition, and the fact that Keys and Dean have a home in La Jolla gave the evening the feel of a homecoming. —John Wogan, Travel + Leisure, 23 Apr. 2026

His remains were determined to be unrecoverable in 1956 until new DNA testing led to his homecoming. —Bri Buckley, CBS News, 23 Apr. 2026

Starring Paul Rudd and Nick Jonas, the musical comedy arrived at Sands following its debut at SXSW and a homecoming screening at the Dublin Film Festival. —Zac Ntim, Deadline, 22 Apr. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for homecoming

• overcoming
• unbecoming
• becoming
• forthcoming
• incoming
• oncoming
• shortcoming
• succumbing
• upcoming
• coming
• cumming
• drumming

Kids Definition

homecoming

noun

home·​com·​ing ˈhōm-ˌkəm-ing 

1

: a return home

2

a

: the return of a group of people usually on a special occasion to a place formerly frequented

b

: a yearly celebration for alumni at a school