postmortem
8
7.1
- noun
- /ˌpoʊstˈmɔrtəm/
- Jargon
:
postmortem
- I'd be interested in hearing a postmortem on what went wrong with it.
- postmortem analysis
- postmortem debugging
- postmortem analysis tools
I think it would be interesting to discuss a postmortem.
- I think it would be interesting to discuss a postmortem.
- Why don't we move that after action review to the front like a postmortem?
Examples
-
We'll want a postmortem on it anyway.
-
All eyes would turn to Capitol Hill for the congressional postmortem.
Academic text (2000) -
The Republican Party has come to a consensus after a lengthy postmortem analysis of their recent election day humbling.
Blog text (9) -
As usual, the election postmortem continues with the gloating and sour grapes.
Blog text (1) -
After the project was completed, the team held a postmortem to discuss the successes and setbacks they encountered.
-
The manager scheduled a postmortem meeting to analyze the recent campaign and figure out what improvements could be made.
-
Following the election, a thorough postmortem was conducted to evaluate the strategies that contributed to the results.
Synonyms
3
6.5
A meeting after an event to find what went wrong and how to improve
1
6.0
A meeting after a project or event to discuss what went well and how to improve
A careful review of a project or incident to learn what went wrong and improve
Compounds
2
5.8
A medical check that cuts open a dead body to find the cause of death
How Detailed
Surface Forms
Morphology
postmortem = mortem (semi-transparent) = post + mortem
The colloquial 'after-event discussion' sense is a metaphorical extension of 'after death' and depends on recognizing 'post-' and the death-related combining form.
Etymology
Postmortem comes from the Latin parts post- 'after' and mortem 'death'. A helpful way to remember the noun meaning for events is to think of a postmortem as an 'autopsy' for a project — a careful discussion after something ends to find what went right or wrong.