reminiscence

/ˌɹɛm.əˈnɪs.əns/

//ˌɹɛm.əˈnɪs.əns// noun

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"reminiscence" is a 12-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“reminiscence” is uncommon English (frequency #50,189 among 3,094 “R” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#50,189
frequency rank, English
3,094
“R” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - An act of remembering long-past experiences, especially positive or pleasant ones, often fondly.

Corpus desk

Index EN-reminiscence · reminiscence · English

reminiscence · rank #50,189 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #50,189
  • LEN-MEGA 12 letters
  • VOW-5 5 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,094
  • PHOTO-FINISH regrouped

Nearest frequency peer: regrouped (-1 rank slots)

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Long-tail ranks near “reminiscence”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

What this shows Long-tail view: where “reminiscence” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for reminiscence
PropertyValue
Headwordreminiscence
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˌɹɛm.əˈnɪs.əns/
Letters12
Frequency rank#50,189
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “reminiscence” in English

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).reminiscencefalls in this rarity band:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Rare peers in the same band: “regrouped” (#50,188), “regretful” (#50,187), “repulse” (#50,192). Among 3,094 “R” headwords, “reminiscence” is #50,189. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

reminiscence is uncommon English at frequency #50,189 among 3,094 “R” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˌɹɛm.əˈnɪs.əns/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

No generated misspelling entries exist for reminiscence in our index, a straightforward case of a spelling with little room for common typos. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, which tends to mean the word is visually distinctive enough to stand on its own.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Late Latin reminīscentiae (“remembrances”), from Latin reminīscēns, present active participle of reminīscor (“remember”); see reminiscent. The correct English form is reminiscence, spelled R-E-M-I-N-I-S-C-E-N-C-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    An act of remembering long-past experiences, especially positive or pleasant ones, often fondly.
  2. 2
    A mental image thus remembered.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how reminiscence appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. Here was my chance. I took the old man aside, and two or three glasses of Old Crow launched him into reminiscence.
  2. Fogel, working with a script by the journalist Kerry Howley, follows Winner from the age of nine to the aftermath of her plea, and organizes the movie around voice-over reminiscences by Reality (the character is played by Emilia Jones).

Etymology

From Late Latin reminīscentiae (“remembrances”), from Latin reminīscēns, present active participle of reminīscor (“remember”); see reminiscent.

Synonyms

recallrecollection

This word in other languages

reminiscencia(Español)réminiscence(Français)Erinnern(Deutsch)

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "reminiscence"?
"reminiscence" is spelled R-E-M-I-N-I-S-C-E-N-C-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ˌɹɛm.əˈnɪs.əns/.
What does "reminiscence" mean?
As a noun, "reminiscence" means: An act of remembering long-past experiences, especially positive or pleasant ones, often fondly.
How do you pronounce "reminiscence"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "reminiscence" is /ˌɹɛm.əˈnɪs.əns/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "reminiscence"?
From Late Latin reminīscentiae (“remembrances”), from Latin reminīscēns, present active participle of reminīscor (“remember”); see reminiscent. See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "reminiscence", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 12 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

recalcitrant#50,183predominance#50,161plausibility#50,155nightcrawler#50,107

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list