aftersightn.
/ˈɑːftəsʌɪt/, /ˈaftəsʌɪt/, U.S. /ˈæftərˌsaɪt/ Consideration of past events; retrospective view; the capacity to look upon the past for wisdom or insight. Frequently opposed to foresight.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > knowledge > knowledge, what is known > [noun] > after the event, hindsight
aftersight1596
afterknowledge1631
afterlight1704
hindsight1883
1596 B. Griffin Fidessa xlix. sig. E My best deuices proue but after-sight.
1647 N. Bacon Hist. Disc. Govt. 9 The honour due to great after-sight.
1716 in J. Maidment Analecta Scotica (1834) I. 224 Without friend or foe, without foresight or aftersight, without brains or bravery.
1854 Musical World 9 Dec. 810/2 Unable to obtain his money or any part of it, Balfe, with shrewd aftersight, threw up his engagement.
1885 G. W. Melville In Lena Delta iv. 50 Aftersight informed us of much that our foresight had overlooked.
1912 C. M. Stuart In Memoriam C. J. Little 280 Our self-complacent aftersight enables us to see..that Milton the poet soars far above the pamphleteer.
1942 T. S. Eliot Little Gidding ii. 11 Speech impelled us To purify the dialect of the tribe And urge the mind to aftersight and foresight.
2008 K. A. Marling Ice vi. 132 In the bright light of aftersight, it is easy to spot signs of a disaster in the making.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2011; most recently modified version published online December 2021).
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n.1596