(adverb) : rētrō, from re and the pronominal suffix ter, as in citro, ultro, intro, etc..
* Lit., of place, backwards, back; on the back side, behind.
* Denoting tendency, direction, with verbs or nouns of motion: multa videbis retro repulsa revorti,Lucr. 2, 130; so very often with redire, regredi, repetere, remittere, respicere, reverti, revocare, etc., v. h. vv., and cf. Drak. ad Liv. 22, 6, 7, and 27, 28, 6: vestigia retro sequor,Verg. A. 2, 753; 9, 392; 11, 405: dare lintea retro,id. ib. 3, 686: ora retro Flectit,Ov. M. 15, 685: retro inhibitā nave,Liv. 30, 10 et saep.: iter mihi retro ad Alpes versus incidit, Cael. ap. Cic. Fam. 8, 15, 2; cf.: fugam retro spectante milite,Liv. 8, 19: fugit retro,Hor. C. 2, 11, 5: ne currente retro funis eat rotā,id. ib. 3, 10, 10: meretrix retro Perjura cedit,id. ib. 1, 35, 25: retro properare,Ov. H. 5, 31: unde ad hunc orbem redii, unde retro nemo,Sen. Herc. Oet. 48.
* Trop.
* Of time, back; in time back, in past times, before, formerly: et deinceps retro usque ad Romulum,Cic. Rep. 1, 37, 58; cf.: SVPER OMNES RETRO PRINCIPES FORTISSIMO IMP. CAES., etc.,Inscr. Orell. 1049; and so, OMNES RETRO PRINCIPES,ib. 1098: quodcumque retro est,is past,Hor. C. 3, 29, 46: praemissa retro nobilitas,Stat. S. 1, 4, 68; Traj. ap. Plin. Ep. 10, 118 (120): cujus vim si retro quoque velimus custodire (opp. in futurum),id. ib. 10, 115 (116) fin.: meliorum retro principum ( = superiorum),Lampr. Alex. Sev. 34: cum id ab aliis retro factum recordarer,Tert. Uxor. 2, 2: Hebraei retro, qui nunc Judaei,id. Apol. 18.
* In other relations, back, behind, in return, on the contrary, on the other hand, vice versa: ab imā (voce) ad summam ac retro multi sunt gradus,Quint. 11, 3, 15: ut omnia, quae sine eā (honestate) sint, longe retro ponenda censeat,Cic. Tusc. 5, 31, 87: rursum versus retroque,id. Part. 7, 24; cf.: vide rursus retro,id. Fin. 5, 28, 83: sic omnia fatis In pejus ruere, ac retro sublapsa referri, i. e. against one's efforts or wish, Verg. G. 1, 200; cf.: retro vivere,Sen. Ep. 122 fin.: si malum perfidia, non est fallendum. Idem retro,Quint. 5, 10, 74: fructus hominis in operis consistit et retro in fructu hominis operae sunt,Dig. 7, 7, 4; cf. ib. 46, 1, 21; 46, 3, 67 et saep.?*! The words containing retro in composition (except retroversus and retrorsus) are post-Aug.; they are sometimes written separately.