history

HIS-tuh-ree/ˈhɪs.tə.ɹi/

10 meanings of history

1
past of somethingnouncountable
All the things that have happened to a person, place, or thing.
Like a story that belongs to one thing, telling what happened to it.
This old house has a long history.
The car has a history of breaking down.
UsageSay a history of something: a history of problems.
Similarrecord, past, background
2
nouncountable or uncountable
Everything that happened in the past, especially the part we know from written records.
Like a huge pile of everything that ever happened, stacked up behind us.
History is full of surprises that no one saw coming.
Many great ideas have come and gone throughout history.
UsageSay history shows and throughout history, with no the.
Similarpast
Oppositefuture
3
study of pastnouncountable or uncountable
The study of what happened in the past, using real facts and records.
Like being a detective, but the case happened long ago.
She studies history at college.
Our teacher makes history fun by telling real stories.
UsageSay study history, with no a or the.
Note
4
nouncountable
A written or spoken story that tells about past events.
Like a long story that explains how things used to be.
She wrote a history of her small town.
The library has many histories of the war.
UsageSay a history of something: a history of the war.
Similaraccount, story, chronicle, tale
Note
5
medical recordnouncountable
A record of the health problems a person or their family has had or still has.
Like a health diary listing the illnesses someone has had.
The doctor asked about my family history.
She has a history of asthma.
UsageSay a history of an illness: a history of heart trouble.
Similarrecord, background
Note
6
activity lognouncountable
A record of what you have done on a device, such as the web pages you visited.
Like a trail of footprints showing the websites you walked through.
I checked my history to find the website I visited yesterday.
He checked his history to find the article again.
UsageYou can clear your browser history.
Similarlog
Note
7
noununcountable
An important event that people will remember for a long time.
Like a moment so big that everyone will talk about it for years.
When she crossed the finish line, history was made.
That night, the team made history.
UsageMostly in make history: the moon landing made history.
Note
8
noununcountable
The shared past between people who have known each other.
Like a story two people carry with them from knowing each other for years.
Those two have a lot of history together.
There is some history between the two families.
Similarpast, baggage
Note

Less common meanings

9
gone for goodnouncolloquialcountable or uncountable
Something or someone that is finished, gone, or no longer matters.
Like an old toy you've thrown away and forgotten.
Make one more mistake and you're history.
Those old rules are history now.
UsageSay he's history or that's history.
Similartoast
Note
10
write downverbobsolete
To tell or write down the story of past events.
And therefore will hee wipe his Tables cleane, And keepe no Tell-tale to his Memorie, That may repeat, and Historie his losse
c. 1596, William Shakespeare, “The Second Part of Henry the Fourth,. Epilogue.”Here, historie means tell or write down the story of something.
Note

Practice

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Origin

It comes from Latin "historia", which came from Ancient Greek "historia", meaning learning through research. It reached English through Old French.

Checked 1 Nov 2026 · 4 facts

History derives from Latin historia. en.wiktionary.org
Latin historia derives from Ancient Greek historia. en.wiktionary.org
Ancient Greek historia means learning through research. en.wiktionary.org
The word reached English through Old French. en.wiktionary.org