1 retrogress | Definition of retrogress
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retrogress

verb
ret·​ro·​gress | \ ËŒre-trÉ™-ˈgres How to pronounce retrogress (audio) \
retrogressed; retrogressing; retrogresses

Definition of retrogress

intransitive verb

: to move backward : revert
Synonyms & Antonyms Did You Know? Example Sentences Learn More about retrogress

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Synonyms & Antonyms for retrogress

Synonyms

regress, return, revert

Antonyms

advance, develop, evolve, progress

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Did You Know?

As you might guess, retrogress is the opposite of progress. Retrogression is usually an undesirable decline from a higher or advanced level. So, for instance, in difficult social situations an adolescent can retrogress to a childish level of maturity. And under the extreme conditions of total war, a whole society may retrogress to a primitive state. The increasing number of poor or homeless people has been seen as evidence of modern social retrogression, and the rise of loud, name-calling TV and radio personalities strikes many people as a sign of political retrogression.

Examples of retrogress in a Sentence

the quality of research at the university lab has begun to retrogress since the massive budget cuts went into effect

Recent Examples on the Web

 After the 1960s, after the switch in—the shift in the strategy to gaining political clout, a lot of those trends stalled, slowed, even retrogressed. — WSJ, "Holding Ranks on Health Care," 3 July 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'retrogress.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

First Known Use of retrogress

1812, in the meaning defined above

History and Etymology for retrogress

Latin retrogressus, past participle of retrogradi

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More from Merriam-Webster on retrogress

Rhyming Dictionary: Words that rhyme with retrogress

Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for retrogress

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