historic

adjective

his·tor·ic hi-ˈstȯr-ik

-ˈstär-

Synonyms of historic next

: historical: such as

: famous or important in history

historic battlefields

: having great and lasting importance

a historic occasion

: known or established in the past

historic interest rates

: dating from or preserved from a past time or culture

historic buildings

historic artifacts

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

It's wonderful to see so many people here on this historic occasion. She returned safely from her historic flight into space. The court made a historic decision last week. They know of many historic volcanic eruptions in the area. the historic importance of the river

Recent Examples on the Web

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.

In keeping with the historic solidarity between Irish republicans and the Palestinian people, Irish celebrities have been particularly vocal in the antiwar effort. —

Nate Jones, Vulture, 18 Nov. 2024 The remarkably tight race will be historic regardless of the winner. —

Chase Hunter, The Mercury News, 15 Nov. 2024 Firefighters on both coasts were battling wildland blazes Monday after thousands of acres burned in New Jersey amid a historic drought and after strong winds last week sent a blaze howling through Ventura County, California. —

Patrick Smith, NBC News, 12 Nov. 2024 Securing historic levels of funding to our roads, streets and water systems. —

Jake Allen, The Indianapolis Star, 5 Nov. 2024 See all Example Sentences for historic