memento
noun
Libby Lubin
Did you know?
In Latin, memento is the imperative form (meaning it is used as a command) of meminisse, a verb that means “to remember.” (The term memento mori, which refers to a reminder of mortality, translates literally as “remember that you must die,” for example). The history of memento makes it clear where its spelling came from, but because a memento often helps one remember a particular moment, people occasionally spell the term momento. This is typically considered a misspelling, but it appears often enough in edited prose (including the work of such esteemed authors as George Eliot and Dylan Thomas) to have been entered in most dictionaries as an acceptable variant spelling.
Examples of memento in a Sentence
Edie Kasten, CBS News, 6 June 2026
For a more permanent memento of the 51st KC PrideFest, a fully functional tattoo shop will be onsite for flash tattoos for the second time.
—Sophie Lindberg, Kansas City Star, 4 June 2026
Along with recordings, researchers returned with family Bibles, good china, and valuable mementos, including a porcelain pin box given to a Black seamstress by First Lady Edith Wilson.
—Camille Borders, The Atlantic, 3 June 2026
And the memento itself, besides all its in-game significance, has a fun historical tidbit to it, too.
—Nicole Hoey, Robb Report, 3 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for memento
Cite this Entry
“Memento.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/memento. Accessed 10 Jun. 2026.
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memento
noun
