Retro

//ˈɹɛt.ɹəʊ// adj, noun

adj, noun ·Uncommon ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun

1
Past fashions or trends. uncountable
2
a fashion reminiscent of the past wordnet
3
Abbreviation of retrorocket. abbreviation, alt-of, countable
4
Abbreviation of retrospective. abbreviation, alt-of, countable
"Richard Leacock's 1981 film portrait, Louise Brooks, was shown during a retro of Ms. Brooks's films at the Walker Art Center."
5
A chess puzzle of retrograde analysis, requiring the solver to work out the history of moves leading to the position presented. countable, uncountable

Adjective

1
Of, or relating to, the past, past times, or the way things were.
"Scientists say that while the public may think of the moon as a problem solved and a bit retro – the place astronauts visited a half-dozen times way back before Watergate and then abandoned with a giant "meh" from mankind – in fact, lunar studies is a vibrant enterprise that is yielding a wealth of surprises."
2
Affecting things past; retroactive, ex post facto.

Adjective

1
affecting things past wordnet

Synonyms

dated dated ex post facto ex post facto old-timey post-

Antonyms

Example

"The retro feel of this cafe is a hit with young people."

Etymology

Borrowed from French rétro, ultimately from Latin retro.

Related phrases

retro future retro running ex post facto old fashioned old school

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.