English Explanatory Dictionary

déjà vu

English dictionary entry

Meanings

noun
  1. The subjective, unexpected feeling of having experienced something before, especially when that is not the case.
  2. Loosely or humorously, anything one has done before or is being repeated.
verb
  1. To experience déjà vu; to see (something) as though having seen it before.

Pronunciation

dā'-zhä-vo͞oʹ /ˌdeɪ.ʒɑː ˈvuː/ LL-Q1860 (eng)-Naomi Persephone Amethyst (NaomiAmethyst)-déjà vu.wav en-uk-dejavu.ogg En-us-deja vu.ogg

Word forms

déjà vu déjà vus deja vu dejavu déjà vues déjà vuing déjà vued

Etymology

Unadapted borrowing from French déjà vu (literally “already seen”), coined by Émile Boirac in Revue philosophique de la France et de l'étranger, 1876.

Synonyms

promnesia

Related words

déjà entendu jamais vu presque vu

Derived words

DjVu
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