historic
historic — adjective
1. A historic event, achievement, or place is one that people remember or will reme
A historic event, achievement, or place is one that people remember or will remember over time because it marked a major change or had a very strong effect on the course of history.
The historic peace agreement between the two countries ended decades of conflict.
attributive: historic + noun (agreement)
Takeshi visited several historic sites during his trip to Nara last autumn.
The biologist's discovery proved historic for the entire field of genetics.
Diya called the court's ruling a historic moment for equal rights across the country.
That old theatre has been listed as a historic landmark since the early 1960s.
- momentous
More formal and emphatic; suggests an event of very far-reaching consequences (the momentous decision to go to war).
- landmark
Used only before a noun; emphasises a turning point or first of its kind (a landmark court case).
- significant
Broader and less weighty; can apply to anything important, not only historically important (a significant increase in sales).
- groundbreaking
Focuses on innovation and being the first achievement of its kind (a groundbreaking study on vaccines).
- insignificant
Opposite in terms of importance or lasting effect (an insignificant event that nobody remembers).
- unimportant
General opposite; not likely to be remembered or have influence.
文法句型
historic + noun (event/agreement/moment/building)
be/prove/become + historic
用法筆記
Frequently used before nouns such as moment, event, agreement, achievement, day, building, site, and landmark. Can also appear after linking verbs (be, prove, become) in a predicative position, e.g. 'The discovery was historic.' Do not confuse with historical, which means 'relating to the past or the study of history' rather than 'important in history.'
常見錯誤
2. Used to describe a crime or harmful act that someone committed many years ago bu
Used to describe a crime or harmful act that someone committed many years ago but that was never reported, investigated, or punished by the legal system at the time it happened.
The police reopened the case after new evidence emerged about historic offences at the school.
attributive: historic + offences
Faisal was arrested for historic crimes that had gone unreported for more than thirty years.
A special unit was set up to investigate claims of historic abuse in children's homes.
The judge heard testimony about historic offences committed between 1985 and 1992.
- historical
In legal contexts, historical and historic are sometimes used interchangeably for past offences, but historic is more precise to indicate the offence was not dealt with at the time.
文法句型
historic + offence/crime/abuse
用法筆記
Almost always used before a noun (offence, abuse, crime). This sense appears primarily in British legal and journalistic contexts when discussing investigations into past wrongdoing that was never prosecuted at the time it occurred.