retroactively
15
7.2
- adverb
- /ˌrɛtroʊˈæktɪvli/
- Formal
- While tax rates have been increased retroactively to Jan. 1, 1993, withholding tables have not been changed.
- applied retroactively
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Watch on YouTubeI can now retroactively say that this person is the one for me.
- I can now retroactively say that this person is the one for me.
- I mean, I, I still like retroactively have had it with that.
- I mean, and love is also retroactively constructed.
- But do I, like, need to retroactively, like, pretend that I don't love his work?
- That's what kind of retroactively, as it were clarifies that the first that is anticipation.
- So basically when ROCUS pasilist is there, it will have if it punishes your retroactively, it has to make this choice in the future.
- And I want to go like retroactively hug them and collect them up in like a net and say, guys, just stop for a second.
Examples
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The Baathist regime subsequently began to rewrite Kurdish tombstone inscriptions with Arabic in order to retroactively alter the demography.
Academic text (2007) -
The Czech Republic and Spain are going further, retroactively pulling back subsidies they already gave to existing projects.
Academic text (2012) -
We're going to allow operations to charge some of their cost retroactively to the past.
-
Even further, immigration laws, unlike any other under the Constitution, can be applied retroactively.
Academic text (2002) -
The rule with period terms and related characterizations is that they are applied retroactively.
Academic text (1999) -
By the time this woman died, Mitt had already retroactively retired from Bain.
Blog text (9) -
Survivors survive, and humans retroactively find some adaptive benefit to explain their survival.
Blog text (19) -
So we are retroactively adding a seven-year warranty to the tool kits.
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The DOJ argues that SARA's record review provision should be applied retroactively to pre-SARA cases because SARA merely "clarified" prior law.
Academic text (1990) -
The new tax law applies retroactively starting from January 1 of this year.
Synonyms
4
7.0
Looking back at events after they have happened
Surface Forms
Morphology
retroactively = retroactive (transparent) = retro + act + ive + ly
The adverb 'retroactively' is clearly derived from the adjective 'retroactive', indicating the manner of the action.
Etymology
Retroactively comes from retro- meaning 'back', active meaning 'to act', and the ending -ly meaning 'in a way'. So to do something retroactively is to 'act back' — to apply a rule, payment, or decision to an earlier date, which is why it affects things that already happened.