retroactive

adjective

Definition of retroactivenext
as in retrospective

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of retroactive The agency will issue retroactive data through the first quarter of 2021. — Zev Fima,kevin Stankiewicz, CNBC, 27 Sep. 2026 Her sentence was later reduced by one year following a retroactive change to the federal sentencing guidelines, while earned time through the First Step Act also shortened her time in prison. — Nicole Acosta, PEOPLE, 24 Sep. 2026 The new release date was the result of a retroactive change to federal sentencing guidelines and earned time through the First Step Act. — Taylor Dunn, ABC News, 23 Sep. 2026 The couple had sought retroactive approval for the parking structure, which had already been built the previous year. — Stefania Conrieri, Vanity Fair, 21 Sep. 2026 See All Example Sentences for retroactive
Recent Examples of Synonyms for retroactive
  1. retrospective
  2. analytic
  3. meditative
  4. reflective
  5. contemplative
  6. pensive
  7. logical
  8. ruminative
Adjective
  • The Pop master is the subject of a retrospective opening this week at New York’s Whitney Museum of American Art.
    — Daniel Cassady, ARTnews.com, 8 Oct. 2026
  • But Chee’s first-person, present-tense narration differs from most in being, in a seeming paradox, retrospective.
    — Garth Greenwell, New Yorker, 6 Oct. 2026
Definition of retrospective
Adjective
  • Yet, as in many speculative markets, sophisticated participants often have access to better information, stronger analytical tools and more advanced risk-management techniques than retail participants, giving them an informational edge.
    — Aneri Jambusaria, Fortune, 18 Oct. 2026
  • For as well as circulating information, print spread habits of analytic thought.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 14 Oct. 2026
Definition of analytic
Adjective
  • Zaitova fell in love with the meditative process of creating mosaics using natural stone, smalt, and glass tile.
    — Yulia Denisyuk, Condé Nast Traveler, 14 Oct. 2026
  • Mackenzie Crook’s meditative and melancholy comedy is about a man whose life has been on pause since his girlfriend’s disappearance, leading him to use alchemy to get answers.
    — Robert Lloyd, Los Angeles Times, 7 Oct. 2026
Definition of meditative
Adjective
  • On the other hand, many of these works are reflective of the time they were written.
    — New York Times, New York Times, 15 Oct. 2026
  • While prefering Goldman over Morgan Stanley , Jim doesn't think the 3% drop in MS is reflective of its business performance.
    — Kevin Stankiewicz, CNBC, 14 Oct. 2026
Definition of reflective
Adjective
  • Hawka envisions contemplative, quiet scenes in the countryside, with natural light and a documentary-like approach, contrasted with the noise, intense colors, and chaos of the city.
    — Katherine Brodsky, Variety, 12 Oct. 2026
  • Borisov’s brainy, tender, deeply contemplative performance lends an anchoring humanity to a film that might otherwise have curdled into sourness and despair — though there’s plenty of reason for that.
    — David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 6 Oct. 2026
Definition of contemplative
Adjective
  • Enough with the pensive mood pieces; bring back the pie f**king!
    — Richard Lawson, HollywoodReporter, 9 Sep. 2026
  • Reddington sat pensive, drumming his fingers on the defense table.
    — Nicki Brown, CNN Money, 6 Sep. 2026
Definition of pensive
Adjective
  • Perhaps the squad took his ball-respecting mantra to its logical extreme, seemingly reluctant to sully it by smashing it into the net, with Chelsea recording the biggest xG underperformance in the Premier League during his brief tenure.
    — Conor O'Neill, New York Times, 15 Oct. 2026
  • The rebuttal, though methodical and logical, was little more than a momentary speed bump for the runaway popularity of the psychedelic bread story.
    — Jennifer Byrne, Popular Science, 15 Oct. 2026
Definition of logical
Adjective
  • Set on the eve of the Korean war, this ruminative story follows a midwestern family that’s fractured by a mother’s sudden disappearance.
    — Brittany Allen, Literary Hub, 16 Sep. 2026
  • But the book’s ruminative watchfulness is unsuccessfully conjugated in this overly sedate play with music, which has the feel of a song cycle, though sung by the fine cast with gorgeous, lonely sorrow.
    — Brian Seibert, New Yorker, 19 June 2026
Definition of ruminative

Browse Nearby Words

retro
retroactive
retrofit
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Cite this Entry

“Retroactive.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/retroactive. Accessed 20 Oct. 2026.

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