TTile Streak

What RETRO means

Affecting things past.

That is the short version. Read on for how to say RETRO, how to use it, and a quick way to make it stick.

RETRO at a glance

  • Word: RETRO
  • Part of speech: adj
  • Pronunciation: /ˈrɛtroʊ/
  • Meaning: Affecting things past.
  • Example: Retro pay.

Keep this box in view while you read the rest of the page. A short summary like this is often enough for a quick lookup, and the sections below are for when you want the meaning to actually stay with you.

How to say RETRO

Pronunciation: /ˈrɛtroʊ/

Part of speech: adj

Say RETRO out loud a few times. Hearing your own voice say a new word is one of the fastest ways to remember both its sound and its meaning. Try saying it slowly first, then at normal speed, then inside a full sentence. If a part of the pronunciation trips you up, slow down on that part alone before putting the whole word back together.

RETRO in a sentence

Retro pay.

Notice how RETRO fits into that sentence as adj. Try swapping in your own subject and see if the sentence still makes sense. If it does, you have understood the meaning of RETRO, not just memorized it.

Ways to remember RETRO

A new word sticks better when you do something with it, not just read it.

Say it, then use it. Repeat RETRO once, then build one sentence of your own with it today.

Connect it to something you know. Think of a moment from your own week where RETRO could apply, even loosely.

Spell it out. Cover the word, spell RETRO from memory, then check. This catches the letters your eyes skipped over the first time.

Come back tomorrow. A word reviewed a day later is far more likely to stay than one read once and left.

Notice it in the wild. Once you know RETRO, you will start spotting it in things you read. Each time you notice it, the meaning gets a little more solid.

Play a board with RETRO

A definition is easier to keep once you have used the word under a little pressure. Try today's word game, or search for more words like RETRO with the word finder. Missed a word along the way? The vocabulary quiz is a quick way to check what stuck, and missed words come back around for review instead of disappearing.

For teachers and parents

This page works well as a quick reference before a lesson or a homework check. Look up a word, read the definition and example together, then ask the student to build a new sentence with it. A student who can use RETRO correctly in a sentence they made up has learned it. One who can only repeat the definition back has not, yet.

A quick classroom routine: put RETRO on the board, cover the definition, and ask the class to guess the meaning from the example sentence alone. Reveal the real definition after a few guesses. It takes a minute and gets students reasoning about context clues instead of just memorizing.

More words to learn

The letters in RETRO

  • Length: 5 letters
  • Vowels: 2 (E, O)
  • Different letters: 4, so one letter repeats
  • First letter: R, last letter: O

Words built from the same letters

  • FORTE: An asset of special worth or utility.
  • METRO: An electric railway operating below the surface of the ground (usually in a city).
  • OVERT: Open and observable; not secret or hidden.
  • STORE: A supply of something available for future use.
  • TENOR: Intermediate between alto and baritone or bass.
  • TOWER: Anything that approximates the shape of a column or tower.

Nearby words

  • REPEL: Cause to move back by force or influence.
  • RHYME: Be similar in sound, especially with respect to the last syllable.

Questions

What part of speech is RETRO?

RETRO is adj.

How do you say RETRO?

/ˈrɛtroʊ/

Can I see RETRO used in a sentence?

Retro pay.