nos ‧ tal ‧ gia /nɒˈstældʒə $ nɑː-/ BrE AmE noun [uncountable]
[ Date: 1700-1800 ; Language: Modern Latin ; Origin: Greek nostos 'returning home' + algos 'pain' ]
a feeling that a time in the past was good, or the activity of remembering a good time in the past and wishing that things had not changed
nostalgia for
nostalgia for the good old days
He looked back on his university days with a certain amount of nostalgia.
a wave of nostalgia for how great life was in the 1960s
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COLLOCATIONS
■ verbs
▪ feel nostalgia
He didn't feel any nostalgia for his school days.
▪ have nostalgia
The immigrants I spoke to often had an intense nostalgia for their homeland.
■ adjectives
▪ great nostalgia (=a strong feeling of nostalgia)
I read the college newsletter with great nostalgia.
▪ pure nostalgia (=used when talking about good things from the past that are not mixed with things from the present)
It was an evening of pure nostalgia, as the band played hits from the 1940s.
■ phrases
▪ a feeling/sense of nostalgia
Did it give you a sense of nostalgia to see the play on Broadway again?
▪ a pang of nostalgia (=a short feeling of nostalgia)
She felt a pang of nostalgia for the time when they were all children.
▪ a wave of nostalgia (=a strong feeling of nostalgia)
As I drove into the city I felt a wave of nostalgia sweep over me.
■ nostalgia + NOUN
▪ a nostalgia trip informal (=a situation or experience that reminds you of events in the past)
Walking around campus was a great nostalgia trip for both of us.
▪ a nostalgia buff informal (=someone who likes old things)
The restaurant, which still has its 1930s décor, is a favorite with nostalgia buffs.