Meaning and Usage
"後退" (こうたい) primarily means "retreat" or "backing away," often used in military or strategic contexts to describe pulling back from a position. It can also refer to the action of moving backward in a more general sense.
Common Contexts
- Military or conflict situations where forces withdraw.
- Figurative use to describe setbacks or regression in plans or progress.
- Technical use in computing, referring to the backspace key that deletes characters.
Collocations and Patterns
- 後退を余儀なくされる: to be forced to retreat, often used in formal or serious contexts.
- 後退することなく: without retreating, indicating steady progress.
- 後退キー: backspace key on a keyboard.
Usage Notes
When using 後退 to describe retreat, it often implies a strategic or necessary withdrawal rather than a random or chaotic one. In computing, 後退 is a formal term for the backspace function, so it appears in technical or instructional contexts. Learners should not confuse 後退 (こうたい) with 交代 (こうたい), which means "change" or "substitution." The pronunciation is the same but the meanings differ significantly.