reminisce

Synonym Chooser

How is the word reminisce distinct from other similar verbs?

Some common synonyms of reminisce are recall, recollect, remember, and remind. While all these words mean "to bring an image or idea from the past into the mind," reminisce implies a casual often nostalgic recalling of experiences long past and gone.

old college friends like to reminisce

In what contexts can recall take the place of reminisce?

The words recall and reminisce are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, recall suggests an effort to bring back to mind and often to re-create in speech.

can't recall the words of the song

Where would recollect be a reasonable alternative to reminisce?

The synonyms recollect and reminisce are sometimes interchangeable, but recollect implies a bringing back to mind what is lost or scattered.

as near as I can recollect

When can remember be used instead of reminisce?

While in some cases nearly identical to reminisce, remember implies a keeping in memory that may be effortless or unwilled.

remembers that day as though it were yesterday

When is remind a more appropriate choice than reminisce?

In some situations, the words remind and reminisce are roughly equivalent. However, remind suggests a jogging of one's memory by an association or similarity.

that reminds me of a story

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of reminisce After introducing him to her friends, the pair began to reminisce about what had gone wrong in their past relationship, before delving into a steamy encounter. Rachel Choy, Refinery29, 22 Sep. 2025 The Last Decade Before the Future has been on exhibit at the museum since November 2024, and there’s still a chance to visit and reminisce about things like Netscape Navigator and Nintendo 64. Rachel McRady, PEOPLE, 20 Sep. 2025 Over breakfast Wednesday at Fox & Goose Public House, seven of the former lawmakers reunited to reminisce and trade war stories about working with — or against — legendary California politicians Willie Brown, John Burton, and others. Nicole Nixon, Sacbee.com, 3 Sep. 2025 Kevin and Auggie, mistaking Chris for their dimension’s Chris, sit down with him for a drink and begin to reminisce. Adam B. Vary, Variety, 22 Aug. 2025 See All Example Sentences for reminisce
Recent Examples of Synonyms for reminisce
Verb
  • By creating space for these histories in her fictive realm, Pritam strove to remember those on the periphery.
    JSTOR Daily, JSTOR Daily, 30 Oct. 2025
  • The day Affleck came in, Smith remembers, news broke that Affleck and Matt Damon had sold their script for Good Will Hunting for $800,000.
    Victoria Edel, PEOPLE, 29 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • Gavin Newsom is pondering a White House run.
    Lexi Carson, HollywoodReporter, 26 Oct. 2025
  • Martinez notes that the mind-bending plot has given audiences a cinematic experience to truly ponder.
    William Earl, Variety, 23 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • What To Know Olympia Tools International has recalled approximately 530 Pack-N-Stroll Premium Folding Utility Wagons, said the CSPC.
    Amanda Greenwood, MSNBC Newsweek, 27 Oct. 2025
  • Hormel Foods recalled over 4 million pounds of frozen chicken due to metal contamination from a conveyor belt.
    Amber Brenza, Health, 27 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • But beta blockers only address the physical response to anxiety — not the ruminating or worrying.
    The Washington Post, San Diego Union-Tribune, 28 Oct. 2025
  • Now Guillermo del Toro — cinema’s biggest proponent of big-screen fantasy — has completed his two-and-a-half-hour version, an epic adaptation with a blockbuster budget, a stamp of auteurship, and decades spent ruminating on the relevance of Shelley’s text in the modern era.
    Rory Doherty, Vulture, 20 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • There were no dates recollected correctly.
    Nancy Dillon, Rolling Stone, 25 Sep. 2025
  • Leonora liked to think of her life as calm of mind, all passion spent, or, more rarely, as emotion recollected in tranquillity.
    Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 15 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • Louise Hémon The jury would also like to acknowledge a director whose film transported us into an extreme landscape, and created an unsettling atmosphere that kept us contemplating the nature of lust, education, and violence.
    Christian Blauvelt, IndieWire, 24 Oct. 2025
  • Deacon clatters off in his truck, leaving me to contemplate my new home.
    Rowan Jacobsen, Harpers Magazine, 24 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • The two-story Komoka home is a real-world laboratory where the team collects and analyzes data.
    Sujita Sinha, Interesting Engineering, 29 Oct. 2025
  • Research from Omnisend, which analyzed Amazon candy sales using Jungle Scout, found that hard candy and mixed bags are now outpacing chocolate.
    Deirdre Bardolf, FOXNews.com, 29 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • This interplay between exploration and espionage continues today, even when the surface of the world has been almost completely explored.
    Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 28 Oct. 2025
  • This is a wake-up call to venture beyond your comfort zone and explore what truly excites your mind again.
    Valerie Mesa, PEOPLE, 28 Oct. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Reminisce.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/reminisce. Accessed 3 Nov. 2025.

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