retrospect

American  

[re-truh-spekt] / ˈrɛ trəˌspɛkt /

noun

1. contemplation of the past; a survey of past time, events, etc.

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verb (used without object)

1. to look back in thought; refer back (often followed byto ).

   to retrospect to a period in one's youth.

verb (used with object)

1. to look back upon; contemplate retrospectively.

idioms

1. in retrospect, in looking back on past events; upon reflection.

   It was, in retrospect, the happiest day of her life.

retrospect British  

/ ˈrɛtrəʊˌspɛkt /

noun

1. the act of surveying things past (often in the phrase in retrospect )

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verb

1. to contemplate (anything past); look back on (something)

2. to refer

Etymology

Origin of retrospect

1595–1605; probably retro- + (pro)spect

Explanation

In retrospect — that is, in looking back and contemplating the past — we sometimes find ourselves wishing that we had done some things differently. Though this word most commonly appears as a noun in the phrase "in retrospect," it can also be used as a verb. The prefix retro- means “back," and spect is a component of the words inspect, spectator, spectacles, and perspective, among others, which all have to do with looking or seeing. So it makes sense that retrospect means to look back in time, or to remember.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

retrospect

In retrospect, she says, it was "like a ticking time bomb."

From BBC ● Jul. 20, 2026

Was it an insensitive thing to say, in retrospect?

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 1, 2026

Only in retrospect could she see that the permanence she mourned had never been fixed; it was a world her parents had continually worked to hold in place.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 29, 2026

In retrospect, I’m sorry and ashamed that I never spoke with Charles R. I also never saw anyone else do so.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 10, 2026

It is easy to see things in retrospect.

From "The Secret History" by Donna Tartt

Related Words

• hindsight