recall
REE-kawl
rɪˈkɔːl
To bring a fact, event, or situation back into one's mind; to officially order someone to return.
Unlike 'remember,' which can be passive, 'recall' often implies a deliberate effort to retrieve specific information.
The story behind the word. The word literally means 'to call back.' It suggests that a memory is like a person or a dog that has wandered off and must be summoned back to the present moment.
Word relationships
- recollect: Recollect often implies a slower, more piecemeal process of gathering memories together.
- forget: Forget is the simple failure to remember, whereas recall is the active retrieval.
Commonly confused with
- remember: Remembering is the general ability; recalling is the specific act of bringing it to the surface.
Word family
- recollection (noun): The action or faculty of remembering something.
Collocations
- vividly recall
- struggle to recall
- total recall
- beyond recall
Idioms & expressions
- past recall
Example sentences
- "I cannot recall any time of my life when I did not love the light: light of day, light of stars, light of lamps." Personal memoir
- "The witness struggled to recall the exact sequence of events on the night of the robbery." Legal testimony
Memory hook
Think of a 'Recall' button on a phone—it brings back the last person you spoke to. Call it back.
When not to use
Do not use 'recall' when you simply mean 'to have a memory' without effort; 'remember' is more natural for general states.
Fun facts
- In manufacturing, a 'recall' is when a company calls back a defective product.
Explore more words
evoke, commemorate, remembrance, revoke, reminisce, reminiscence
Also appears in
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