evocative

/ɪˈvɑkəɾɪv/

/ɪˈvɒkətɪv/

Other forms: evocatively

Use the adjective evocative when you want to describe something that reminds you of something else. If your mom baked a lot when you were a kid, the smell of cookies in the oven is probably evocative of your childhood.

Evocative comes from the Latin word evocare, which means to "call out" or "summon." Think of a batch of cookies summoning a memory from your childhood. To summon something you need a voice, and indeed, the Latin word for voice is vocare. Other related words include the noun vocation, which means "a calling."

Definitions of evocative

1. adjective

   serving to bring to mind
   synonyms: redolent, remindful, reminiscent, resonant

   aware, mindful

   bearing in mind; attentive to