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
Jessica Chapel, Condé Nast Traveler, 23 Mar. 2026
Friends have been stopping by, leaving notes and mementos, trying to make sense of a tragedy that unfolded in just minutes.
—Shelley Bortz, CBS News, 23 Mar. 2026
If a church building closes, artwork, devotional items and other mementos are first offered to a neighboring parish and then to any parish in the Diocese.
—Anna Ortiz, Chicago Tribune, 8 Mar. 2026
The 1,500-square-foot (140 square-meter) exhibit features family photos, mementos and short bios of the Nisei men shared by their relatives to ensure that stories of past bravery endure for younger generations, especially as questions of nationality still persist.
—ABC News, 3 Mar. 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 2 Apr. 2026.
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memento
noun
