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retrograde (adj.)

late 14c., originally of the apparent motions of planets, from Latin retrogradus "going back, going backward," from retrogradi "move backward," from retro- "backward" (see retro-) + gradi "to go, step" (from PIE root *ghredh- "to walk, go"). General sense of "tending to revert" is recorded from 1530s.

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Definitions of retrograde from WordNet
1
retrograde (v.)
move backward in an orbit, of celestial bodies;
retrograde (v.)
move in a direction contrary to the usual one;
retrograde (v.)
move back;
The glacier retrogrades
Synonyms: retreat
retrograde (v.)
go back over;
retrograde arguments
Synonyms: rehash / hash over
retrograde (v.)
get worse or fall back to a previous condition;
Synonyms: regress / retrogress
2
retrograde (adj.)
moving from east to west on the celestial sphere; or--for planets--around the sun in a direction opposite to that of the Earth;
retrograde (adj.)
of amnesia; affecting time immediately preceding trauma;
retrograde (adj.)
going from better to worse;
Synonyms: retrogressive
retrograde (adj.)
moving or directed or tending in a backward direction or contrary to a previous direction;
Synonyms: retral
From wordnet.princeton.edu