retrospective

American  

[re-truh-spek-tiv] / ˌrɛ trəˈspɛk tɪv /

adjective

1. directed to the past; contemplative of past situations, events, etc.

2. looking or directed backward.

3. retroactive, as a statute.

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noun

1. an art exhibit showing an entire phase or representative examples of an artist's lifework.

2. any exhibition or series of showings or performances, as of musical works or motion pictures, representing the work of an artist or performer over all or a major part of a career.

   a retrospective of John Ford's movies.

retrospective British  

/ ˌrɛtrəʊˈspɛktɪv /

adjective

1. looking or directed backwards, esp in time; characterized by retrospection

2. applying to the past; retroactive

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noun

1. an exhibition of an artist's life's work or a representative selection of it

Other Word Forms

• retrospectively adverb
• retrospectiveness noun

Etymology

Origin of retrospective

First recorded in 1655–65; retrospect + -ive

Example Sentences

Riz Ahmed stars in a contemporary ‘Hamlet,’ ‘Malcolm in the Middle’ is all grown up, the first American retrospective of Marcel Duchamp in 50 years, and more.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 7, 2026

MoMA’s show also nods to its own history with the power couple: Rivera received the museum’s second-ever retrospective in 1931, after Henri Matisse, and Kahlo entered the collection in 1943.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 19, 2026

This retrospective cohort study included 7,938 adults with overweight or obesity in Ohio and Florida.

From Science Daily • Mar. 19, 2026

The retrospective, including several other works loaned from other countries, features paintings, sculptures and drawings.

From Barron's • Feb. 18, 2026

As we have seen, the discovery of oxygen was retrospective.

From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton

Related Words

• reflective