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retroactive.

Extending in scope, effect, application or influence to a prior time or to prior conditions

11 characters3 syllables approx.English language

Meaning & usage

adj/ˌɹɛt.ɹəʊˈæk.tɪv/UK/ˌɹɛ.tɹoʊˈæk.tɪv/US
  1. Extending in scope, effect, application or influence to a prior time or to prior conditions

    not-comparable
Where this word comes from

First attested in 1610. From French rétroactif, equivalent to retro- + active.

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Definitions, grammatical labels, IPA, etymology and examples: Wiktionary contributors, extracted by Kaikki / Wiktextract. Adapted under CC BY-SA 4.0. Selected fields and authored examples are shown; third-party quotations and audio are omitted. See contributor history.

Last enriched 2026-09-10. Definitions are in English. Romanizations are shown when supplied by the source; syllable estimates are omitted for unsupported scripts.