as in to revert
to go back to a previous and usually lower state or level
the quality of research at the university lab has begun to retrogress since the massive budget cuts went into effect
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Recent Examples of retrogress
This annual limit, and the intense global demand has created significant back logs, particularly for applicants from India and China, whose EB-2 priority dates have continually retrogressed.
—
Doug Melville, Forbes.com, 3 Jan. 2026
After the 1960s, after the switch in—the shift in the strategy to gaining political clout, a lot of those trends stalled, slowed, even retrogressed.
—WSJ, 3 July 2017
Doug Melville, Forbes.com, 3 Jan. 2026
After the 1960s, after the switch in—the shift in the strategy to gaining political clout, a lot of those trends stalled, slowed, even retrogressed.
—WSJ, 3 July 2017
Recent Examples of Synonyms for retrogress
Verb
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Contingency plans are in place should the security situation deteriorate, which may necessitate reverting individual sailings or the wider structural change of the service back to the Cape of Good Hope route, Maersk said.—
Glenn Taylor,
Sourcing Journal,
4 Feb. 2026
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In truth, Johnson’s lack of meaningful contribution to date may now prompt Palace to revert back to that way of operating in future.—
Matt Woosnam,
New York Times,
4 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Ukrainian officials said 150 Ukrainian servicemen and seven civilians returned from Russian captivity.—
DEMOCRAT-GAZETTE STAFF FROM WIRE REPORTS,
Arkansas Online,
6 Feb. 2026
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Austin Reaves, who was playing in his second game after returning from a 19-game absence, scores 13 of his 35 points in the fourth quarter.—
Broderick Turner,
Los Angeles Times,
6 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Retrogress.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/retrogress. Accessed 16 Feb. 2026.
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