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View synonyms for déjà vu

déjà vu

or de·ja vu

[ dey-zhah voo, vyoo; French dey-zha vy ]

noun

  1. Psychology. the illusion of having previously experienced something actually being encountered for the first time.
  2. disagreeable familiarity or sameness:

    The new television season had a sense of déjà vu about it—the same old plots and characters with new names.

  3. the sense or feeling of having previously experienced something that really has been encountered before:

    It was déjà vu at the bobsled track today as the U.S. team again claimed the top podium positions.



déjà vu

/ ˈdeɪʒæ ˈvuː; deʒa vy /

noun

  1. the experience of perceiving a new situation as if it had occurred before. It is sometimes associated with exhaustion or certain types of mental disorder
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

déjà vu

  1. The strange sensation that something one is now experiencing has happened before: “I knew I had never been in the house before, but as I walked up the staircase, I got a weird sense of déjà vu.” From French, meaning “already seen.”
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Spelling Note

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Word History and Origins

Origin of déjà vu1

First recorded in 1900–05; from French: literally, “already seen”
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Word History and Origins

Origin of déjà vu1

from French, literally: already seen
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Example Sentences

If you’re experiencing alarming levels of déjà vu this week with the debate over Matt Gaetz’s fitness to run the DOJ, it’s not just you.

From Slate

Along with the gloom, there is a strong sense of déjà vu - like we have seen this all many times before in the past 15 years.

From BBC

This week, there was a feeling of deja vu at City Hall as political leaders braced for another round against President-elect Donald Trump.

If Deadwyler had any lingering bitterness about the furor, or concerns about déjà vu with the building excitement about “The Piano Lesson,” it wasn’t in evidence when she bounded into a Beverly Hills hotel room recently, upbeat and lively.

Forgive Democrats if they are having a bit of déjà vu.

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