adjective
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famous or likely to become famous in history; significant
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a less common word for historical historical historical historical historical
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Also: secondary. linguistics (of Latin, Greek, or Sanskrit verb tenses) referring to past time
Usage
A distinction is usually made between historic (important, significant) and historical (pertaining to history): a historic decision; a historical perspective
Other Word Forms
- nonhistoric adjective
- pseudohistoric adjective
- quasi-historic adjective
- semihistoric adjective
- superhistoric adjective
- unhistoric adjective
Etymology
Origin of historic
First recorded in 1605–15; from Latin historicus, from Greek historikós “historical, scientific,” from histor(ía) “inquiry” ( see history) + -ikos -ic
Explanation
Something that's historic was important in its day and continues to be studied and remembered, like the historic integration of segregated schools and the historic March on Washington in 1963. When you describe something that's historic, it's either the first or the only of its kind. Historic moments are so important or momentous that they'll show up in history textbooks. A building can be historic, and so can a speech or a battle or a disaster. The root word is the Greek historia, "a learning by inquiry or history," although historic specifically means "important in history."
Vocabulary lists containing historic
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Commonly Confused Words, List 3
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Commonly Confused Words, List 5
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
An inital attempt to remove the device's detonator failed, French media reports, prompting authorities to destroy the historic munition in situ with a controlled explosion.
From BBC • Apr. 19, 2026
“Today, universities nationwide are facing a historic wave of calls for change,” writes Ms. McInnis in her letter responding to the report.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 19, 2026
The new system will not consider these historic cases.
From BBC • Apr. 19, 2026
It’s just too difficult to do business in downtown’s historic core, he says.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 18, 2026
There is no question that the historic civil rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s owed its existence to the summer of 1919, when organized black resistance to white abuse first became a reality.
From "1919 The Year That Changed America" by Martin W. Sandler
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
