historical

adjective

his·​tor·​i·​cal hi-ˈstȯr-i-kəl 

-ˈstär-

1

a

: of, relating to, or having the character of history

historical data

b

: based on history

historical novels

c

: used in the past and reproduced in historical presentations

2

: famous in history : historic sense a

3

a

: secondary sense 1c

b

: diachronic

historical grammar

historicalness

hi-ˈstȯr-i-kəl-nəs 

-ˈstär-

noun

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).

Synonyms

• documentary
• factual
• hard
• literal
• matter-of-fact
• nonfictional
• objective
• true

Examples of historical in a Sentence

He strove for historical accuracy in the movie.

The kings are listed in historical order.

Recent Examples on the Web

The Dow closed up, which aligned with the historical trend of market rallies on Election Day. —Dan Mangan,kevin Breuninger,rebecca Picciotto,ece Yildirim,annie Nova, CNBC, 5 Nov. 2024

The theory proposes that each generation should be considered a separate social group formed by specific historical events and social and cultural environments. —Boris Abaev, Forbes, 5 Nov. 2024

Science & Medicine What military doctors can teach us about power in the United States May 16, 2024 This effect was sparked by a historical fluke: a cluster of deaths of 27-year-old musicians within a two-year period. —Karen Kaplan, Los Angeles Times, 5 Nov. 2024

Economists caution that a straightforward reversion to historical economic conditions is probably not realistic. —Tobias Burns, The Hill, 5 Nov. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing historical

• anti-historical
• art historical
• historical materialism
• historical museum
• historical present
• historical society

Kids Definition

historical

adjective

his·​tor·​i·​cal his-ˈtȯr-i-kəl 

-ˈtär-

1

a

: of, relating to, or having the character of history

historical fact

b

: based on history

historical novels

c

: of, relating to, or exhibiting objects from the past

a historical museum

2

: historic sense 2

historically

-i-k(ə-)lē

adverb

historicalness

-i-kəl-nəs 

noun