Etymograph

English

retro

Retro comes from Latin retro ‘back, backwards, behind’.

  1. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEretro1‘back, backwards, behind’
  2. Frenchc. 1600–presentrétro1
  3. Englishearliest quotation 1983retro1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English retro
  2. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1983, Sightlines: “Richard Leacock's 1981 film portrait, Louise Brooks, was shown…”.

Lineage

  1. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEretroWiktionary, English retro‘back, backwards, behind’
  2. Frenchc. 1600–presentrétroWiktionary, English retro
  3. Englishearliest quotation 1983retroWiktionary, English retro. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1983, Sightlines: “Richard Leacock's 1981 film portrait, Louise Brooks, was shown…”

Linked words

through Latin retro ‘back, backwards, behind’

rear

Today it means

adj Of, or relating to, the past, past times, or the way things were.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “retro”. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.

Etymograph / Latin retro / retro

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