Recollection

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /ɹɛkəˈlɛkʃən/

Definitions

1. The act of remembering something from the past or a memory that has been recalled
2. The process of retrieving past experiences or memories and the specific memories that are brought to mind through this act
3. The mental action of summoning past thoughts or experiences and the memories that result from this cognitive retrieval

Etymology: The verb "recollect" was built in Latin from "re-" (again) and "colligere" (to gather), so its original sense was literally "to collect again," gathering scattered things back together. The past participle "recollectus" carried that sense into French as "récollection," and English took the noun from both routes. Over time the physical image of regathering objects turned inward, so that to recollect something came to mean gathering back one's thoughts, the mind reassembling what had been scattered by time. The noun itself is a simple formation: the prefix "re-" attached to "collection," producing a word for the act of recalling or the memory that results. Its meaning stayed close to the verb's, so a recollection is simply the product of that mental regathering, something a person has called back to mind.

Synonyms: memory, remembrance, reminiscence, retrospection, recall

Antonyms: forgetting, oblivion, amnesia, neglect, disregard