ret·ro·spect
ˈre-trə-ˌspekt 
1
: a review of or meditation on past events
2
archaic
: reference to or regard of a precedent or authority
retrospected; retrospecting; retrospects
: to go back over in thought
Synonyms
Examples of retrospect in a Sentence
Noun
in retrospect, we should have saved more money for college
Recent Examples on the Web
Ben Rosenstock, Vulture, 18 Nov. 2024
The temporary balances struck by our leaders are seen in retrospect not as end-states but as only ephemeral (if necessary) strategies for their time.
—Henry A. Kissinger, Foreign Affairs, 18 Nov. 2024
Mark Gimein, theweek, 19 Feb. 2024
Yet even if the interdiction on restaurants was, in retrospect, excessive, no one could have known that then.
—Adam Gopnik, The New Yorker, 19 Feb. 2024
Mark Danner, The New York Review of Books, 1 July 2021
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Noun
In retrospect, maybe that episode should’ve saved John’s assassination for the end.
—Ben Rosenstock, Vulture, 18 Nov. 2024
The temporary balances struck by our leaders are seen in retrospect not as end-states but as only ephemeral (if necessary) strategies for their time.
—Henry A. Kissinger, Foreign Affairs, 18 Nov. 2024
Adjective
But in retrospect Varsity Blues feels like a turning point.
—Mark Gimein, theweek, 19 Feb. 2024
Yet even if the interdiction on restaurants was, in retrospect, excessive, no one could have known that then.
—Adam Gopnik, The New Yorker, 19 Feb. 2024
Verb
In retrospect the unfolding of Watergate in the press and the courts and Congress is our American Oresteia.
—Mark Danner, The New York Review of Books, 1 July 2021
See all Example Sentences for retrospect
Dictionary Entries Near retrospect
Cite this Entry
“Retrospect.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/retrospect. Accessed 28 Nov. 2024.
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