Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

retrospective

/ˌɹɛt.ɹəˈspɛk.tɪv/

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.48 in modern English

Syllables: ret-ro-spec-tive
IPA: /ˌɹɛt.ɹəˈspɛk.tɪv/

20

Scrabble Score

13

Letters

4

Syllables

9

Unique Chars

Meaning

adj

Of, relating to, or contemplating the past.

adj

Looking backwards.

adj

Affecting or influencing past things; retroactive.

noun

An exhibition of works from an extended period of an artist's activity.

Example Sentences

"While the pictures of what precisely unfolded after Cissé looked to tread on Evans are not entirely conclusive, the Football Association will surely pore over them on Thursday before quite possibly using video evidence to impose lengthy retrospective bans stemming from an incident unseen by Anthony Taylor, the referee."
"Following a retrospective review of patient records, the parents of eligible patients were contacted by telephone to provide information about the study."

Etymology

From retrospect + -ive. From Latin retrōspectus, perfect passive participle of retrōspiciō (“to look back at”).

Origin

Source language: Latin

Word Breakdown

Prefix: retrospect
Root: retrōspectus
Suffix: -ive

Regional Pronunciation

American English: /ˌɹɛt.ɹəˈspɛk.tɪv/
British English: /ˌɹɛt.ɹə(ʊ)ˈspɛk.tɪv/

Inflected Forms

more retrospective (comparative) most retrospective (superlative) retrospectives (plural)

Derived Forms

miniretrospective retrospectively retrospectiveness retrospectivity

Phrases

retrospective determinism retrospective memory

Frequently Paired Words

festschrift memorial

Synonyms

hindsightly historical reflective tribute

Antonyms

forward-looking prospective

Rhymes With

effective perspective objective collective detective respective protective selective prospective subjective directive ineffective

Questions

How do you pronounce retrospective?: The recorded pronunciation is /ˌɹɛt.ɹəˈspɛk.tɪv/.
What does retrospective mean?: Of, relating to, or contemplating the past.
Where does retrospective come from?: It is traced to Latin.

How to pronounce retrospective

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “retrospective”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/ˌɹɛt.ɹəˈspɛk.tɪv/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “retrospective”.
Repeat and practice — Say “retrospective” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.