Forgettings

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. The act of failing to remember information or experiences over time; the process of letting go of memories that are no longer pertinent or necessary; a state in which a person is unaware of past events or details due to a lapse in memory
2. A mechanism by which certain thoughts or facts become inaccessible in the mind due to neglect or passage of time; an occurrence in which individuals are unable to recall details, often leading to gaps in knowledge or understanding; the phenomenon whereby retained information diminishes as new experiences take precedence
3. The experience of not being able to retrieve stored information or past experiences; a process where outdated or irrelevant memories fade from consciousness; a condition reflecting the natural decline of memory accuracy over time

Etymology: "Forgettings" is the plural of "forgetting," used when speaking of individual lapses of memory rather than the general faculty. The noun "forgetting" is itself formed from the verb "forget," which comes from Old English "forgietan," a compound of the prefix "for-" (meaning "away" or "utterly") and "gietan," to get or grasp. The sense is therefore roughly "to lose one's grip on," so a forgetting is literally a moment when something slips out of one's grasp.

Synonyms: omissions, oversights

Antonyms: remembrances, recall, memory