Retroactive

Part of speech: adjective

Pronunciation: /ˌɹɛt.ɹəʊˈæk.tɪv/

Definitions

1. Taking effect from a date in the past rather than from the present or future moment
2. Applying to events or circumstances that occurred before its implementation rather than addressing only present or future instances
3. Having an effect that relates to or influences past events rather than solely current or upcoming situations

Etymology: "Retroactive" is a compound built from the Latin prefix "retro-", meaning "backward" or "back", and "active", from Latin "activus", meaning "doing" or "effective". Its earliest recorded appearance in English dates to 1610, though the word reached English through French "rétroactif", which had been formed on the same pattern. The sense it carries today, of a law or decision reaching back to cover events that already happened, follows naturally from those parts: the action is pushed backward in time. The word is a fairly transparent coinage rather than a term with a dramatic backstory. Its main interest lies in how legal and political debate has leaned on it. A retroactive law punishes conduct that was legal when it was done, which is why many legal traditions treat such laws with suspicion, even though the adjective itself describes only the direction of effect, not whether that effect is fair.

Synonyms: retroactive, ex post facto

Antonyms: prospective, future