Nostalgia Definition and Meaning
Edited by Tayyaba Rehman — By Fiza Rafique — Published on May 1, 2024
Nostalgia refers to a sentimental longing or wistful affection for the past, typically for a period or place with happy personal associations. e.g., Watching old cartoons fills him with nostalgia for his childhood.
Table of Contents
Nostalgia Definitions
The pleasure and sadness that is caused by remembering something from the past and wishing that you could experience it again.
The music evoked strong feelings of nostalgia.
A longing for a former place or time that brought joy.
The aroma of freshly baked cookies filled him with nostalgia for his grandmother's kitchen.
A sentimental yearning for the return to or of some past period or irrecoverable condition.
She felt a deep sense of nostalgia when she visited her old school.
A wistful or excessively sentimental yearning for return to or of some real or imagined period or irrecoverable condition in the past.
Vintage fashion trends often inspire nostalgia for the glamour of earlier decades.
A longing to return to a past period or to one's home or homeland.
Immigrants often feel a strong sense of nostalgia during cultural festivals.
An emotional attachment to the past, often associated with a longing to return or relive moments.
Nostalgia swept over her as she flipped through her high school yearbook.
A yearning for the past, often in idealized form.
He has nostalgia for a time he only knows from stories and old photographs.
A bittersweet longing for things, persons, or situations of the past.
The condition of being homesick; homesickness.
A longing for home or familiar surroundings; homesickness.
(transferred sense) A bittersweet yearning for the things of the past.
Homesickness; esp., a severe and sometimes fatal form of melancholia, due to homesickness.
A sentimental yearning to return to an earlier time remembered as happier or more pleasant, or a former place evoking happy memories; a longing to experience again a former happy time; as, a nostalgia for the brotherhood of the Woodstock music festival; a nostalgia for the comradeship of one's college friends.
Longing for something past
The act or practice of indulging in nostalgic memories.
Every Christmas, their nostalgia for childhood traditions grows stronger.
Nostalgia Snonyms
Reminiscence
The act or process of recalling past experiences or events.
Our family gatherings are filled with reminiscence and nostalgia.
Yearning
A feeling of intense longing for something lost or unavailable.
His yearning for the simpler days of youth is a strong form of nostalgia.
Longing
A strong, persistent desire or craving, especially for something not easily attainable.
There's a longing in her songs that evokes a powerful nostalgia.
Wistfulness
A state of melancholy longing.
There's a wistfulness in his eyes that speaks of deep nostalgia for the past.
Homesickness
A feeling of distress or longing for one's home during a period of absence from it.
College students often experience homesickness and nostalgia for their hometown.
Sentimentality
Excessive tenderness, sadness, or nostalgia.
Watching old films often stirs up a great deal of sentimentality.
Regret
A feeling of sadness, repentance, or disappointment over something that has happened or been done.
Regret for his lost youth is tinged with nostalgia.
Saudade
A deep emotional state of nostalgic longing for an absent something or someone that one loves.
Her poems are filled with saudade and nostalgia for her homeland.
Pining
A feeling of deep longing, especially for something unattainable.
Pining for his childhood days in the countryside is a source of constant nostalgia.
Melancholy
A feeling of pensive sadness, typically with no obvious cause.
Autumn brings with it a gentle melancholy and nostalgia for the end of summer.
Nostalgia Idioms & Phrases
Nostalgia for the old days
Longing for the way things used to be.
There's a strong sense of nostalgia for the old days in his stories.
Nostalgia trip
Engaging in activities that remind one of the past.
Watching those old movies was a real nostalgia trip.
Wave of nostalgia
A sudden strong feeling of nostalgia.
A wave of nostalgia hit her when she heard the old song.
Bask in nostalgia
To enjoy and indulge in nostalgic feelings.
During the reunion, everyone basked in nostalgia for hours.
Fuel for nostalgia
Something that triggers nostalgic feelings.
Old photographs are great fuel for nostalgia.
Bathed in nostalgia
Surrounded by things that evoke nostalgia.
The museum was bathed in nostalgia, with exhibits from the past century.
Lost in nostalgia
Being deeply absorbed in memories of past times.
He often gets lost in nostalgia when he visits his hometown.
Ride the nostalgia wave
To actively engage in activities that bring back memories.
He decided to ride the nostalgia wave by visiting his childhood summer camp.
Nostalgia runs deep
Having profound nostalgic feelings.
In this town, nostalgia runs deep for the community’s historic roots.
Nostalgia hits hard
When nostalgic feelings are intense and sudden.
When he left for college, nostalgia hit hard.
Swept away by nostalgia
Completely overtaken by nostalgic emotions.
She was swept away by nostalgia during the old movie.
Caught up in nostalgia
Being engrossed in nostalgic thoughts.
They were caught up in nostalgia while looking through the photo albums.
Echoes of nostalgia
Reminders or hints of the past that evoke nostalgia.
The traditional festival was full of echoes of nostalgia.
Stir up nostalgia
To cause a revival of nostalgic feelings.
Visiting the old playground stirred up nostalgia.
Drenched in nostalgia
To be completely immersed in nostalgic feelings.
The old music hall was drenched in nostalgia.
Nostalgia Example Sentences
Nostalgia filled the room as they watched the vintage film.
The reunion was tinged with nostalgia for their school days.
He felt nostalgia for the carefree days of his youth.
She writes with a nostalgia that evokes a bygone era.
There's a strong sense of nostalgia that comes with flipping through old photo albums.
Nostalgia for her childhood summers spent by the lake overwhelmed her.
He often spoke with nostalgia about his years abroad.
The smell of freshly baked bread is always filled with nostalgia.
Vintage stores are often visited by those looking to recapture a sense of nostalgia.
The music from the '80s always brings back a wave of nostalgia.
Nostalgia seems to grip him more strongly around the holidays.
Nostalgia for traditional values sometimes influences political discussions.
They shared stories of the past, each tale wrapped in layers of nostalgia.
There’s a nostalgia in old sports broadcasts that can’t be replicated.
The festival is designed to evoke nostalgia with its retro themes.
Common Curiosities
How do we divide nostalgia into syllables?
Nostalgia is divided as nos-tal-gi-a.
What is a stressed syllable in nostalgia?
The stressed syllable in nostalgia is the second syllable: nos-TAL-gi-a.
How many syllables are in nostalgia?
Nostalgia has four syllables.
How is nostalgia used in a sentence?
Nostalgia is used to describe feelings of longing or affection for the past.
Why is it called nostalgia?
"Nostalgia" comes from the Greek words "nostos" (return home) and "algos" (pain), originally describing the longing for returning home.
What is the verb form of nostalgia?
Nostalgia does not have a verb form; it is a noun.
What part of speech is nostalgia?
Nostalgia is a noun.
What is the root word of nostalgia?
The root words of nostalgia are the Greek "nostos" (return) and "algos" (pain).
What is another term for nostalgia?
Another term for nostalgia is "reminiscence."
What is the singular form of nostalgia?
The singular form is nostalgia.
Is nostalgia an abstract noun?
Yes, nostalgia is an abstract noun as it refers to a feeling.
Is nostalgia a vowel or consonant?
Nostalgia starts with a consonant.
Is the word nostalgia Gerund?
No, nostalgia is not a gerund; it is a noun.
What is the pronunciation of nostalgia?
Nostalgia is pronounced as /nɒˈstældʒə/ in American English.
Is nostalgia a noun or adjective?
Nostalgia is a noun.
Is nostalgia an adverb?
No, nostalgia is not an adverb.
Is nostalgia a collective noun?
No, nostalgia is not typically considered a collective noun.
Is the nostalgia term a metaphor?
Nostalgia itself is not a metaphor, but it can be used metaphorically to describe a longing for the past.
What is the opposite of nostalgia?
The opposite of nostalgia might be "forward-looking" or "anticipation."
Is nostalgia a negative or positive word?
Nostalgia is generally considered neutral but can have either positive or negative connotations depending on the context.
Is the word nostalgia imperative?
Nostalgia as a noun cannot be imperative.
Which vowel is used before nostalgia?
Typically, the article "a" is used before nostalgia (e.g., He felt a nostalgia for his college days).
Which preposition is used with nostalgia?
"For" is commonly used with nostalgia, as in "nostalgia for the past."
Which article is used with nostalgia?
The indefinite article "a" is commonly used with nostalgia (e.g., She has a nostalgia for the 90s).
Which determiner is used with nostalgia?
Determiners like "the" or "some" can be used with nostalgia (e.g., The nostalgia of his stories).
What is the plural form of nostalgia?
The plural form is nostalgias.
Is nostalgia a countable noun?
Yes, nostalgia can be considered a countable noun (e.g., different types of nostalgias).
Is the word “nostalgia” a Direct object or an Indirect object?
Nostalgia can be a direct object in a sentence (e.g., I feel nostalgia).
Which conjunction is used with nostalgia?
Conjunctions like "and" and "but" can be used (e.g., Nostalgia for the past and excitement for the future).
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Written by
Fiza RafiqueFiza Rafique is a skilled content writer at AskDifference.com, where she meticulously refines and enhances written pieces. Drawing from her vast editorial expertise, Fiza ensures clarity, accuracy, and precision in every article. Passionate about language, she continually seeks to elevate the quality of content for readers worldwide.
Edited by
Tayyaba RehmanTayyaba Rehman is a distinguished writer, currently serving as a primary contributor to askdifference.com. As a researcher in semantics and etymology, Tayyaba's passion for the complexity of languages and their distinctions has found a perfect home on the platform. Tayyaba delves into the intricacies of language, distinguishing between commonly confused words and phrases, thereby providing clarity for readers worldwide.
