Flashforward

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. A technique in storytelling that reveals events yet to come
2. A narrative device used to show future occurrences within a plot
3. A storytelling method that interrupts the chronological sequence to depict moments that will happen later in the story

Etymology: "Flashforward" is a blend of "flashback" and "forward," combining the storytelling device of jumping to an earlier time with the idea of moving ahead. The pairing is a neat piece of word-making: "flashback" was already in use for a narrative technique that reveals past events, and "forward" supplied the opposite direction, so the new term names the same trick aimed at the future. The word's meaning follows its construction closely. A flashforward interrupts the ordinary sequence of a story to show events that have not yet happened in the main timeline, often leaving the reader to wonder how the characters arrive at that moment. Because the term is built transparently from two familiar words, it needs little explanation, and its structure mirrors the device it describes: one word looks back, the other looks ahead, and the blend lets a single term cover both.

Synonyms: foreshadow, preview, foresee, anticipate, predict

Antonyms: flashback, reminisce, retrospect, recall, reflect