adjective / noun / adverb
retro
RET-roh/ˈretrəʊ/
A style that imitates or evokes the recent past.
The rotary telephone and mid-century lamp create a retro style.
Etymology
French rétro abbreviates rétrograde, associated with moving backward. Applied to style, that backward movement becomes a return to the fashions and designs of the recent past.
In context
a retro middle-class fun from like the 1950s through 70s is bowling.
More examples
- These retro sunglasses remind me of styles from the seventies.
- Her love of retro shows in her colorful kitchen.
- She dresses retro but uses the latest technology.
Forms
retro
Similar words
- vintage
- Usually describes something actually old, rather than a modern imitation.
- old-fashioned
- Suggests an earlier style, without necessarily implying a deliberate revival.
- nostalgic
- Emphasizes fond feelings about the past rather than a particular style.