reminisce

verb

Definition of reminiscenext
1
as in to remember

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to ponder

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 And as officials work to determine what caused the blaze, area residents are reminiscing. —Zuri Primos, Kansas City Star, 2 June 2025 On May 31, the actors took the stage at a packed Paramount Theatre and reminisced about their days filming seven seasons of the drama centered on a New York advertising agency in the 1960s. —Erin Jensen, USA Today, 2 June 2025 In it, Dante and Randal get trapped in a freezer and reminisce about their crazy adventures — which mostly consist of the same clip from the pilot (which, again, hadn’t even actually aired because of the way ABC aired the show) repeated several times. —Wilson Chapman, IndieWire, 31 May 2025 Then, reminiscing about the story, with Nani telling it. —Jazz Tangcay, Variety, 30 May 2025 See All Example Sentences for reminisce
Recent Examples of Synonyms for reminisce
  1. remember
  2. ponder
  3. recall
  4. ruminate
  5. recollect
  6. contemplate
  7. analyze
  8. explore
Verb
  • Yesterday's race in Montreal will not be remembered as one of the all-time great Canadian F1 races.
    — ArsTechnica, ArsTechnica, 16 June 2025
  • Use in-app tools to set limits, but remember kids often know how to circumvent these, so pay attention to where your kid’s device is too.
    — Laura Edelson, Scientific American, 16 June 2025
Definition of remember
Verb
  • Tyler Dragon ponders if Rodgers actually makes the Steelers better.
    — Jim Reineking, USA Today, 7 June 2025
  • The cuts come as Warner Bros. Discovery is said to be pondering a possible spinoff of its declining cable TV assets, which include its Turner channels, Discovery Networks, HGTV and Food Network, similar to what Comcast is doing with its NBCUniversal cable outlets (with the exception of Bravo).
    — Stephen Battaglio, Los Angeles Times, 4 June 2025
Definition of ponder
Verb
  • Loew was made the mark in a kind of confidence game, Schulberg recalls, with Thalberg and Mayer putting on a show of activity at the failing Louis B. Mayer Productions that nonetheless impressed the Hollywood innocent.
    — Adam Gopnik, New Yorker, 9 June 2025
  • Krueger recalls a client missing tax-free QSBS treatment by only six months due to the timing of an acquisition.
    — Kristin McKenna, Forbes.com, 9 June 2025
Definition of recall
Verb
  • The shot sent Fenway Park into a frenzy and left the Yankees ruminating over a few calls that didn’t go their way in the top of the frame.
    — Gary Phillips, New York Daily News, 14 June 2025
  • Piani, who also wrote the screenplay, includes moments of the scribe at work — that is to say procrastinating, ruminating and occasionally disassociating from the terror of the blank page.
    — Lovia Gyarkye, HollywoodReporter, 27 May 2025
Definition of ruminate
Verb
  • In the days leading up to GMA's departure, the team fondly recollected their experiences working in the center of an iconic N.Y.C. landmark.
    — Michael Nied, People.com, 13 June 2025
  • The Roman Emperor Domitian struck a truce with the Dacians that allowed Rome to recollect its strengths until a new emperor, Trajan, was ready for war a decade later.
    — A. Wess Mitchell, Foreign Affairs, 22 Apr. 2025
Definition of recollect
Verb
  • These appear to be slightly more survivable, although the casualty rate is so high no Western army would contemplate such tactics.
    — David Hambling, Forbes.com, 10 June 2025
  • Smart’s captors subjected her to rape daily, something that drove her to the point of contemplating suicide.
    — Stephanie Kaloi, People.com, 5 June 2025
Definition of contemplate
Verb
  • When something doesn’t work, don’t punish the misstep—analyze the inputs, refine the process, and reuse the insight.
    — Brent Gleeson, Forbes.com, 8 June 2025
  • Wilson said the cost of deferred infrastructure maintenance in La Jolla would be substantial, though it hadn’t been analyzed yet.
    — Michael Smolens, San Diego Union-Tribune, 8 June 2025
Definition of analyze
Verb
  • Yes Docter shared that the new film will explore the challenges faced by the toys in a digital-first world.
    — Scott Roxborough, HollywoodReporter, 13 June 2025
  • Kids can splash in the gentle surf, explore interactive splash pads, or climb and play at the colorful beachfront playground, all just steps from the sand.
    — Rita Wells, Miami Herald, 13 June 2025
Definition of explore

Browse Nearby Words

reminds
reminisce
reminisce (about)
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Cite this Entry

“Reminisce.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/reminisce. Accessed 19 Jun. 2025.

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