historic
adjective
Did you know?
historic or historical?
Do you experience a slight pause before using either of these words as you try to remember which one is correct and whether it should be preceded by an or a? If so, you’re not alone, for many people find this pair particularly tricky. Historic and historical are both occasionally found preceded by an, since the initial h in each word was formerly left unpronounced. Now this h is heard, and a is far more common than an (by a ratio of about 4 to 1 in American English).
Historic and historical have been used interchangeably by many writers, even in recent years. If you would like to avoid being corrected, however, use historical for matters relating to history (the historical society), and historic to refer to things having great and lasting importance (a historic occasion).
Examples of historic in a Sentence
Allison Smith, Forbes.com, 7 Apr. 2025
The Ritz-Carlton preserved historic details like century-old shelving and original onsen (hot spring) plumbing without crossing into museum territory.
—Paul Jebara, Travel + Leisure, 6 Apr. 2025
Gain an edge with CNBC Pro LIVE, an exclusive, inaugural event at the historic New York Stock Exchange.
—Jesse Pound, CNBC, 6 Apr. 2025
Liu poignantly chose to dedicate her historic win to not just her team but also everyone on that plane.
—Patrick Snell, CNN Money, 6 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for historic
Cite this Entry
“Historic.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/historic. Accessed 13 Apr. 2025.
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historic
adjective
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