hindsight

English

Etymology

From hind +‎ sight, 19th c. Compare Latinate retrospect.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈhaɪn(d)saɪt/

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

Noun

hindsight (countable and uncountable, plural hindsights)

1. Realization or understanding of the significance and nature of events after they have occurred.

   You know what they say, hindsight is twenty-twenty.

   When you read "Seven Little Rabbits" at age 6 and read it again 15 years later, the hindsight you've developed in the time between will make you look at and think of the book very differently!

   • 1961 March, “Talking of trains”, in Trains Illustrated, page 133:

     Hindsight is more easily acquired than foresight.

2. (rare) The rear sight of a firearm.

Antonyms

• foresight

Hypernyms

• sight

Derived terms

• hindsight is 20/20
• hindsightly
• in hindsight
• twenty-twenty hindsight

 

Translations

after-the-fact realisation or understanding

• Afrikaans: nawete
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: ^{(please verify)} 事后诸葛亮 (zh) (shìhòu Zhūgě Liàng), ^{(please verify)} 马后炮 (zh) (mǎhòupào)

• Czech: zpětný pohled m
• Danish: bagklogskab (da) c
• Dutch: terugblik (nl) m
• Finnish: jälkiviisaus
• French: recul (fr) m
• German: Rückblick (de) m
• Italian: senno di poi (it) m
• Japanese: 後知恵 (あとぢえ, ato jie)
• Kannada: ಹಿನ್ನೋಟ (kn) (hinnōṭa)
• Norwegian: etterpåklokskap m
• Portuguese: retrospecto (pt) m
• Russian: взгля́д в про́шлое m (vzgljád v próšloje), ретроспективный взгляд m (retrospektivnyj vzgljad)
• Spanish: retrospectiva (es) f, perspectiva (es) f, noción "a posteriori", conocimiento "a posteriori"
• Swedish: efterklokhet (sv), facit (sv) n (figuratively)
• Turkish: retrospektif (tr)

rear sight of a firearm

• Bulgarian: прицел (bg) m (pricel)
• Finnish: takatähtäin
• Russian: прицел (ru) m (pricel)

See also

• afterknowledge
• hindlook
• retrospect