retrograde
In a reverse directionIn a reverse direction; backwards.
» The readiest support for planets' having confocal orbits is their sometimes retrograde motion.
halfb1t · Tatoeba · CC BY 2.0 FRMeaning
1 sensesIn a reverse direction; backwards.
Examples
3 sentencesThe readiest support for planets' having confocal orbits is their sometimes retrograde motion.
The US was defeated by the retrograde group of the Taliban.
Seventeen of the moons have a retrograde orbit, meaning they orbit in the opposite direction as Saturn and its other moons.
Origin
The adjective is derived from Middle English retrograd, retrograde (“of a planet: appearinThe adjective is derived from Middle English retrograd, retrograde (“of a planet: appearing to move in a direction opposite to the order of the zodiac signs, retrograde; unfortunate”), from Middle French retrograde and Old French retrograde (“of a celestial object: appearing to move backwards; moving backwards; reverse; palindromic; opposed to change”) (modern French rétrograde), and from their etymon Latin retrōgradus (“of a celestial object: appearing to move backwards”) (compare Late Latin retrōgradus (“reverse; palindromic”)), from retrō (“back, backwards; behind; before, formerly”) + gradus (“pace, step”). By surface analysis, retro- + -grade.
Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
Forms
more retrograde, most retrograde| Comparative | more retrograde Lesson |
|---|---|
| Superlative | most retrograde |
regular
Synonyms
1 synonymsLessons for this word
1 lessons- A2Comparatives — Because it has a comparative form
See also
neighbours in the dictionaryDictionary text adapted from Wiktionary (Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0) and Open English WordNet / Princeton WordNet (CC BY 4.0, WordNet License); shared under CC BY-SA 4.0. Example sentences and recordings are credited where they appear.