nostalgic

1 of 2

adjective

nos·​tal·​gic nä-ˈstal-jik 

nə-,

 also  nȯ-,

nō-;

nə-ˈstäl-

: feeling or inspiring nostalgia: such as

a

: longing for or thinking fondly of a past time or condition

As we drove through the French countryside, I couldn't help being not just nostalgic, but wistful, about how simple wine was 25 years ago.

—Matt Kramer

The protest mostly featured the usual suspects—anti-capitalists, environmentalists, union types chanting "Solidarity," and aging hippies nostalgic for their youth.

—Margaret Wente

b

: evocative of a longed-for past time or condition

He loved good stories, especially nostalgic ones from his boyhood, and relished the telling.

—Peter Schworm

He soon parlayed his nostalgic pictures into a business that would eventually include writing, antique collecting, museum operations, and reproduction-furniture making.

—David K. Leff

nostalgically

nä-ˈstal-ji-k(ə-)lē 

nə-

 also  nȯ-

nō-;

nə-ˈstäl-

adverb

thinking nostalgically of the summers they spent together

looking back nostalgically on happier times

nostalgic

2 of 2

noun

plural nostalgics

: someone who longs for a past time or condition : a person given to nostalgia

There are nostalgics on both sides who felt better with a predictably snarling standoff than with the uncertain paths now opening.

—Flora Lewis

Eventually it would become an empty shell, a refuge for nostalgics unable to accept the challenge facing all organizations in a changing world; adapt or perish.

—John L. H. Keep

Examples of nostalgic in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

The quintet opened the show on a nostalgic note, and not only because the two songs Antonoff performed with the group showed his Springsteen influence even more than Bleachers. —Jem Aswad, Variety, 18 Dec. 2024

The images that went viral were often unnerving: high-flash nostalgic party pictures of grinning models with extra molars, or portraits of a sobbing Steve Harvey sloshing liquor in a pitch-black room. —Jacqui Palumbo, CNN, 18 Dec. 2024

Noun

Dressed in black, these nostalgics marched through northern Italian towns where Mussolini was arrested and executed at the end of World War II, and also in Predappio, Mussolini’s birthplace and final resting place. —Nicole Winfield, San Diego Union-Tribune, 28 Apr. 2024

And there’s even that little red eraser ball cursor from back in the day for nostalgics. —Joel Balsam, Travel + Leisure, 6 Dec. 2023

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

nostalg(ia) + -ic entry 1

Noun

noun derivative of nostalgic entry 1

First Known Use

Adjective

1782, in the meaning defined above

Noun

1874, in the meaning defined above