zeitgeist

noun

zeit·​geist ˈtsīt-ˌgīst  ˈzīt- 

variants often Zeitgeist

: the general intellectual, moral, and cultural climate of an era

Did you know?

Scholars have long maintained that each era has a unique spirit, a nature or climate that sets it apart from all others. In German, such a spirit is known as Zeitgeist, from the German words Zeit, meaning "time," and Geist, meaning "spirit" or "ghost." (This same Geist, when combined with poltern, meaning "to knock," led to the English word poltergeist referring to a noisy ghost.) It is common nowadays to read about something "tapping into" or "capturing" the zeitgeist, as doing so often entails popularity or profitability in appealing to a great many people, though sometimes the zeitgeist of a particular time and place is only recognized in hindsight, either due to nostalgia or with the benefit of (one hopes) greater wisdom.

Examples of zeitgeist in a Sentence

His songs perfectly captured the zeitgeist of 1960s America.

Recent Examples on the Web

In the aftermath of this dominant run by Nvidia and many custom accelerator companies, CPUs are re-entering the zeitgeist. — Alex Knapp, Forbes.com, 21 Aug. 2026

Hannigan first hit the cultural zeitgeist as teen witch Willow Rosenberg on Buffy the Vampire Slayer, but along the way found particular notoriety as the surprisingly promiscuous band geek Michelle in American Pie (1999). — Skyler Trepel, Entertainment Weekly, 20 Aug. 2026

The topic is clearly in the zeitgeist and has been explored across a number of TikTok videos, particularly relevant since the growth of GLP1s. — Peter White, Deadline, 18 Aug. 2026

And on the heels of this most recent ’90s trend to slide back into the zeitgeist come some excellent accessories. — Daisy Shaw-Ellis, Vogue, 18 Aug. 2026

Word History

Etymology

German, from Zeit + Geist spirit

First Known Use

1835, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for zeitgeist

• enticed
• sufficed
• antichrist
• overpriced
• poltergeist
• sacrificed
• diced
• feist
• heist
• iced
• lysed
• priced

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