Definition of "flashback" []

• A literary or cinematic device in which an earlier event is inserted into the normal chronological order of a narrative. (noun)
• The episode or scene depicted by means of this device. (noun)
• An unexpected recurrence of the effects of a hallucinogenic drug long after its original use. (noun)
• Psychology A recurring, intensely vivid mental image of a past traumatic experience: "Another study shows that women who served in Vietnam still struggle with depression, anxiety, and painful flashbacks from the war” ( New York Times). (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "Viggo Mortensen plays the unnamed father, Australian actor Kodi Smit-McPhee plays the son, while Charlize Theron appears in flashback as their deceased wife and mother."
• "So I wrote the story as a mystery, partially in flashback, to provide context."
• "Although we only see Charlie, Tom's wife, in flashback, she seems to share Lillian's love of essential ingredients."