Retrogressively

Part of speech: adverb

Definitions

1. In a way that describes moving backward or reverting to a previous, often worse, condition
2. Characterized by a backward movement or regression to an earlier state, typically considered negative
3. Acting so as to undo progress or return to an inferior or less developed situation

Etymology: "Retrogressively" is simply the adverb form of "retrogressive," built by attaching the English suffix "-ly" to that adjective, which means it moves in a direction opposite to the usual one. Its base goes back to Latin "retrogradi," "to step backward," formed from "retro," "backward," and "gradi," "to step" or "walk." That same Latin verb also gave English "retrograde," which entered the language earlier and has the same backward-step sense. The "-ive" in "retrogressive" marks an adjective describing a tendency or quality, while "-ly" turns that adjective into an adverb describing how something happens. So a process that unfolds backward, toward an earlier and worse condition, can be described as happening "retrogressively." The word's meaning stays close to its physical root, the image of a walker taking steps in reverse.

Synonyms: regressively, backwardly

Antonyms: progressively, advancing, forward