flashback

1 of 2

noun

flash·​back ˈflash-ˌbak How to pronounce flashback (audio)
1
: a recession of flame to an unwanted position (as into a blowpipe)
2
a
: interruption of chronological sequence (as in a film or literary work) by interjection of events of earlier occurrence
also : an instance of flashback
b
: a past incident recurring vividly in the mind

flash back

2 of 2

verb

flashed back; flashing back; flashes back

intransitive verb

1
: to focus one's mind on or vividly remember a past time or incident
usually used with to
flashed back to my childhood
2
: to employ a flashback (as in a film)
usually used with to

Examples of flashback in a Sentence

Noun The character's childhood was described in a series of flashbacks. He's having flashbacks of his days in the war.
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
Torres’s real mother designed set pieces for his film, including a fantastical playground that appears in flashbacks to Alejandro’s youth. Sonia Rao, Washington Post, 15 Mar. 2024 Using flashbacks to flesh out the seven episodes, the show lacks the narrative momentum the title would suggest, feeling a little too much like homework by landing in a no-man’s land that doesn’t find the sweet spot between politics and true crime. Brian Lowry, CNN, 15 Mar. 2024 But the show goes beyond a play-by-play of the search to offer flashbacks that shed light on Stanton’s dynamic with the president. Vanessa Armstrong, Smithsonian Magazine, 14 Mar. 2024 Memories of his dead mother haunt him, and early flashbacks reveal a tranquil childhood interrupted by gruesome violence. Lovia Gyarkye, The Hollywood Reporter, 12 Mar. 2024 These cultural flashbacks counter the current rush to make AI take over our lives. Armond White, National Review, 6 Mar. 2024 Millennials—or anyone who went out in the late aughts to early 2010s—may be having fashion flashbacks. Channing Smith, Glamour, 4 Mar. 2024 However, the film’s various entry points into these flashbacks follow no consistent structure or logic, which dulls their emotional impact. Siddhant Adlakha, Variety, 10 Mar. 2024 The outcome was a scary flashback for the Kings, who led by 30 in Chicago on Feb. 3 before the Bulls came back to cut the deficit to three. Jason Anderson, Sacramento Bee, 5 Mar. 2024
Verb
When the clip flashes back to the home, Williams is still stationed on the floor there — arms wrapped around an exhausted version of herself seeking comfort. Larisha Paul, Rolling Stone, 1 Mar. 2024 As Oppenheimer defends himself in front of a committee of hanging judges, the movie uses his anecdotes to flash back in time, and Nolan creates a hypnotic multi-tiered storytelling structure, using it to tease out the hidden continuities that shaped Oppenheimer’s life and his creation of the bomb. Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 19 July 2023 The Quinta Brunson comedy picked up five months into the school year, only flashing back to the beginning of the year at the show’s central school, in order to sync up with real life. Jackie Strause, The Hollywood Reporter, 8 Feb. 2024 From there, the premiere flashes back to the morning after Belly and Conrad's first kiss, as Belly immediately confesses to Jeremiah (Gavin Casalegno) what happened with his older brother. Sydney Bucksbaum, EW.com, 14 July 2023 Golden State could flash back to Nikola Jokic’s prayer 3 that banked in with 0.7 seconds left, or Chet Holmgren’s buzzer-beating 3 in an OT loss and, days later, his trio of game-winning free throws made off a Draymond Green faux-pas foul. Shayna Rubin, The Mercury News, 11 Feb. 2024 The second episode then flashes back to the events leading up to the disappearance, with Margaret meeting Mercy by chance, and courting her to help care for Gus and his older siblings. Hunter Ingram, Variety, 27 Jan. 2024 His mind flashed back to the night before — at the team hotel in Owings Mills, Maryland — when the Chiefs held their quarterback meeting with coaches. Jesse Newell, Kansas City Star, 29 Jan. 2024 The book begins at Oppenheimer’s funeral and then flashes back to his childhood, before churning on through the prewar years and the development of the bomb. Jeffrey Kluger, TIME, 29 Jan. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'flashback.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1903, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1944, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of flashback was in 1903

Dictionary Entries Near flashback

flash back

flashback

flash-bang

Cite this Entry

“Flashback.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/flashback. Accessed 29 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

flashback

noun
flash·​back ˈflash-ˌbak How to pronounce flashback (audio)
1
: the introduction of a past event into a story or motion picture
also : this past event
2
: a past incident recurring clearly in the mind

More from Merriam-Webster on flashback

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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