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Glite Dictionary
foggy recollection

foggy recollection

6.8
A memory that is unclear and hard to remember
  • noun
  • /ˈfɔɡi ˌrɛkəˈlɛkʃən/
translation icon : recuerdo vago
  • Her foggy recollection of the event made it difficult to piece together what happened.

Examples

  • Except, everybody seems to have a very foggy recollection of what they actually saw, and there's nothing but totally circumspective evidence.

    Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery (2022)

  • I often find that my foggy recollection of childhood events is filled with gaps.

  • After the meeting, I had a foggy recollection of the main points discussed.

Synonyms

memory
vsfoggy recollection
∞ 1.3

A thing you remember from the past

is a vague or indistinct version of that stored impression
recollection
vsfoggy recollection
116 3.8

A memory of something from the past or the act of remembering it

is a faint unclear version of that recall

How Clear

memorability
1 4.9
foggy recollection
6.8

Surface Forms

foggy recollection singular
foggy recollections plural

Morphology

foggy + recollection

The adjective 'foggy' conveys lack of clarity and 'recollection' means a memory, so their combination directly yields 'an unclear or indistinct memory.' This metaphorical use of 'foggy' to mean 'unclear' is common and parallels constructions in many languages, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents would readily infer the meaning.

Etymology

The phrase foggy recollection comes from the image of fog covering a scene: when fog is thick you cannot see details, so the memory feels blurred. That's why it means 'a vague or indistinct memory'.