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.

Barkley was on pace to beat Dickerson’s historic mark, but Eagles coach Nick Sirianni held him out of their Week 18 game against the woeful Giants. —

Rob Reischel, Forbes, 12 Jan. 2025 Many of the series' train arrivals, departures, and platform conversations were filmed at Keighley & Worth Valley Railway, a historic station — still running steam and diesel engines — with a vintage vibe that was a perfect fit for the show's era. —

Matt Cabral, EW.com, 12 Jan. 2025 Some of the historic buildings, including Altadena’s Zane Grey Estate and Rogers’ Western-style Palisades home, had formal landmark status on the National Register of Historic Places or another list. —

Daniel Miller, Los Angeles Times, 12 Jan. 2025 The Oakland Hills fire is such a historic catastrophe that it is burned into the department psyche. —

Julia Prodis Sulek, The Mercury News, 12 Jan. 2025 See all Example Sentences for historic