rétrospection
\ʁe.tʁɔs.pɛk.sjɔ̃\
The verdict
“rétrospection” is uncommon French (outside the top frequency list), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency French
- 13
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Action de regarder en arrière, dans le passé.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | rétrospection |
| Language | French |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | \ʁe.tʁɔs.pɛk.sjɔ̃\ |
| Letters | 13 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “rétrospection” sits in French frequency
Rare enough to double-check
rétrospection is uncommon French outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun, transcribed \ʁe.tʁɔs.pɛk.sjɔ̃\. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "Action de regarder en arrière, dans le passé.".
rétrospection has no tracked misspelling variants, a sign its spelling follows regular French conventions. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.
No explicit etymology string is stored for this entry, so its spelling is easiest explained by how it's pronounced rather than where it came from. The correct French form is rétrospection, spelled R-É-T-R-O-S-P-E-C-T-I-O-N.
Definition
- 1Action de regarder en arrière, dans le passé.
This word in other languages
Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Using “rétrospection”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct French spelling is R-É-T-R-O-S-P-E-C-T-I-O-N - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as \ʁe.tʁɔs.pɛk.sjɔ̃\ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Browse more French words and confusable pairs in the same reference. French words
Data Source
Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.