Retrogressors

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A group of individuals who move backward or revert to a previous state, especially in terms of progress or development
2. People or entities that represent a decline or deterioration in societal, moral, or technological advancement
3. Collectively, those who regress or decline rather than advance, often counteracting progress in various fields or areas

Etymology: "Retrogressors" is formed from "retrogress" plus the agent suffix "-or", which in English denotes one who or that which performs an action. "Retrogress" itself comes from the Latin "retrogradi", meaning "to walk backward", built from "retro" (backward) and "gradi" (to step or walk). The verb entered English through the same Latin source as the older "retrograde", and it carries the literal sense of stepping back that the modern figurative meaning of decline or reversal still preserves. The plural noun is the form of "retrogressor", a person or group that goes backward. The suffix "-or" has long been used this way, as in "investor" or "aggressor", so the noun follows an ordinary pattern rather than a special coinage.