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Glite Dictionary
hark-back

hark-back

9.1
A return to an earlier style or idea
  • noun
  • /hɑrk bæk/
translation icon : retroceso
  • The politician's speech was a hark-back to attitudes of a previous generation.

Examples

  • The director's latest film is a hark-back to the golden age of Hollywood.

  • The new fashion line is a hark-back to the 1980s.

  • Her retro dress is a clear hark-back to 1960s fashion.

  • This movie is a hark-back to classic horror films.

  • Her retro dress is a clear hark-back to 1960s fashion.

  • The director's latest film is a hark-back to the golden age of Hollywood.

  • The politician's speech was a hark-back to attitudes of a previous generation.

Synonyms

throwback
vshark-back
4 7.9

Having features like things from an earlier time

is about an act of returning to past styles or opinions rather than resemblance
retro look
vshark-back
1 3.9

A style of clothes or home that copies old fashions

is about mentioning or returning to earlier ideas rather than copying a whole style

How Reminiscent

revival
52 4.2
throwback
4 7.9
hark-back
9.1
reference
329 3.2
hint
153 1.5

Surface Forms

hark-back singular
hark-backs plural

Morphology

hark-back = hark back (semi-transparent) = back + hark

The components are recognizable, but the noun's sense of referring to earlier times is a figurative extension rather than a fully literal combination.

Etymology

The word hark-back comes from hark meaning 'listen' and back meaning 'to the past'. So a hark-back is something that 'turns attention back' to an earlier time, like a style or idea from years ago.