noun
hindsight
HYN-syt
noun
1
The understanding you gain about a past event only after it has happened.
"In hindsight, we should have left earlier to beat the traffic."
"Hindsight makes it easy to see where the plan went wrong."
How to Use Hindsight
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishLooking back on something and realising what you should have known or done at the time.
Memory tip
Almost always used in the phrase "in hindsight" or "with the benefit of hindsight."
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Common pairings
in hindsight
with hindsight
20/20 hindsight
Word Forms
hindsights plural
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In _____, we should have left earlier to beat the traffic.
Etymology
From hind + sight, coined in the 19th century.