Reminisce and its relative reminiscence come from the mind—that is to say, they come from the Latin word for "mind," which is mens. A root related to mens teamed up with the prefix re- to create the Latin verb reminisci ("to remember"), an ancestor of both words. Reminisce is one of several English verbs starting with re- that mean "to bring an image or idea from the past into the mind." Others in this group include remember, recall, remind, and recollect. Reminisce distinguishes itself from the others by implying a casual recalling of experiences long past, often with a sense of nostalgia.
remember implies a keeping in memory that may be effortless or unwilled.
remembers that day as though it were yesterday
recollect implies a bringing back to mind what is lost or scattered.
as near as I can recollect
recall suggests an effort to bring back to mind and often to re-create in speech.
can't recall the words of the song
remind suggests a jogging of one's memory by an association or similarity.
that reminds me of a story
reminisce implies a casual often nostalgic recalling of experiences long past and gone.
old college friends like to reminisce
Examples of reminisce in a Sentence
Ray pauses to point out the Whisky a Go Go, on Sunset Boulevard, and reminisces about the night Elvis Presley went there to see the Kinks play.—David Wild, Rolling Stone, 13 May 1993When relatives reminisce about my great-grandfather, they almost always precede it with some reference to his affection for me.—Donna Tartt, Harper's, July 1992We had apple fritters, roast chicken, an enormous lunch, with Mrs. Truman talkative, easy, and the President reminiscing and telling jokes.—Lady Bird Johnson2 Sept. 1965,,
A White House Diary, 1970
He reminisced with old buddies at his high school reunion.
She reminisced about her time in Europe.
Recent Examples on the WebPinky Cole, founder and CEO of Slutty Vegan, a vegan hamburger U.S. restaurant chain, reminisced on how investors used to open their wallets just a few years ago.—Shawn Tully, Fortune, 10 Oct. 2024 Why the 2028 Games could do the same July 26, 2024
During a talk held as part of the Valencia school’s 50th anniversary celebration in 2023, Fitzpatrick reminisced about his path that led him to taking the job.—Tracy Brown, Los Angeles Times, 9 Oct. 2024 In the unexpected clip, Dion wore a vintage 1996 Super Bowl sweatshirt and reminisced about the past match-up between the Cowboys and the Steelers.—Emily Zemler, Rolling Stone, 7 Oct. 2024 And while catching up with host Sherri Shepherd, the two reminisced about their previous employment on the long-running ABC daytime series.—Dave Quinn, People.com, 4 Oct. 2024 See all Example Sentences for reminisce
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'reminisce.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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