flashback

American  

[flash-bak] / ˈflæʃˌbæk /

noun

1. a device in the narrative of a motion picture, novel, etc., by which an event or scene taking place before the present time in the narrative is inserted into the chronological structure of the work.

2. an event or scene so inserted.

3. Also called flashback hallucinosis.  Psychiatry.

   1. the spontaneous recurrence of visual hallucinations or other effects of a drug, as LSD, long after the use of the drug has been discontinued.

   2. recurrent and abnormally vivid recollection of a traumatic experience, as a battle, sometimes accompanied by hallucinations.

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flashback British  

/ ˈflæʃˌbæk /

noun

1. a transition in a novel, film, etc, to an earlier scene or event

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verb

1. (intr, adverb) to return in a novel, film, etc, to a past event

Usage

What does flashback mean? A flashback is a technique in movies, novels, and other narratives in which the present story transitions into a scene from the past.When used as a verb, the term is usually spelled as two words, as in My favorite part of the book is when it flashes back to their childhood. The opposite of a flashback is a flash-forward—when the narrative transitions into a scene from the future.Flashback is also used in psychology to refer to recollections or hallucinations of past events.Example: The flashback scene showed how they got their superpowers.

Etymology

Origin of flashback

1910–15; 1965–70 flashback for def. 3; noun use of verb phrase flash back

Example Sentences

Khaleela said she had flashbacks to the night of Aman's death and suffers from panic attacks as a result of what has happened.

From BBC

As the film gets rolling, via flashbacks, it rolls right off the tracks.

From The Wall Street Journal

This will be a tale of crime and punishment told in flashback, rewinding to Becket’s mother, an heiress excised from an eleven-figure fortune for giving birth as an unwed teenager.

From Los Angeles Times

He said the concussion triggered his language difficulties and caused him to endure flashbacks, anxiety, and brain fog after the incident.

From BBC

Yet the flashback sequences to Vito Corleone’s arrival in America give it resonance for a country built on immigration, and the film is now almost universally considered the best of the three.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• hallucination
• memory
• recollection