memento
muh-MEN-toh
/məˈmɛntoʊ/
An object kept as a reminder or token of a person, place, or past trip.
Focuses on psychological attachment to a specific personal memory; holds emotional rather than financial value.
The story behind the word. Derived directly from the Latin imperative 'memento' meaning 'remember!'. It entered English through expressions like 'memento mori' ('remember that you must die'), which were skulls or tokens kept to urge mindfulness of mortality.
Word relationships
- souvenir: Souvenir often implies commercial mass-produced shop items, whereas memento carries personal emotional depth.
- token: Token is broader and can symbolize current agreement or affection, not strictly past travel.
Commonly confused with
- moment: A moment is a brief period of time, while a memento is a tangible object kept to recall that time.
Word family
- mementos (noun (plural)): Multiple reminder tokens.
Collocations
- cherished memento
- memento of the trip
- fitting memento
Idioms & expressions
- memento mori
Example sentences
- "He kept a small sea shell from the Mediterranean coast as a memento of his honeymoon." Personal travel collection
Memory hook
ME-MENTO: A token in my MEMORY (memento) kept for ME. Physical object triggering a memory.
When not to use
Do not misspell as 'momento' (a common error influenced by the word 'moment').
Fun facts
- 'Memento' is among the most frequently misspelled words in English because people assume it stems from 'moment' rather than 'memory'.
Explore more words
souvenir, remembrance, memorial, relic, commemorate, sentimental
Also appears in
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