flashes back

Memory intrudes unexpectedly

Flashes back means to return mentally to an earlier time, especially when triggered by something in the present: The smell of gunpowder flashed him back to his tour in Afghanistan.

The term comes from film editing, where a flashback interrupts the present narrative to show past events.

Someone flashes back to a memory; a story flashes back to provide context.

Related

deja vu · past life · repression · dissociation · buried memory · montage · childhood memory · nonlinear narrative · time jump · intrusive thoughts · emotional triggers · amnesia · lost time · retrieval · nostalgia · rumination · tactile sensation · sense memory

Opposites
temporal direction in narrative

flashes backanticipates

Expects before it happens

fast-forwards · foreshadows · looks ahead · projects

chronological vs. non-chronological narration

flashes backmoves forward

Progresses in direction faced

progresses · advances · moves on · carries on · resumes

Family

flash, back, flashes, flashed, flashing, flashy, flasher, flashback, flashbacks

Familiarity
Top 200,000
Profile
Known to kids · Used worldwide · Timeless · Everyday, not technical · Rated G