recollectionrec‧ol‧lec‧tion /ˌrekəˈlekʃən/ ●○○ noun formal 
My earliest recollections are of my mother bending over my cot.2[uncountable] an act of remembering somethinghave no recollection (of something) (=not remember) I have no recollection of how I found my way there in the dark.to (the best of) my recollection (=used when you are unsure if you remember correctly) To the best of my recollection, she drives a Mercedes. No one, to my recollection, gave a second thought to the risks involved.
EXAMPLES FROM OTHER DICTIONARIES
- She knew her father only through photographs and her mother's recollections.
- But her recollections of her earlier days were the richest she had.
- Even now the recollection seized him in the abdomen, and a kind of sick longing made him tremble.
- That must have been the case, although I have no clear recollection.
- The recollection of the summer evening sunlight coming through the large window behind the preacher's head evokes many nostalgic memories.
- The recollection of those whispered words came rushing back to haunt her.
- There Ernest, Theodore, and Reginald were born within six years, but Edward's recollections of this time are sketchy.
- To be honest, my only recollection is of the surroundings.
- What is the last recollection before losing consciousness and the first thing recalled after regaining awareness?
Longman Language Activatorto forget something
to no longer remember information, something that happened in the past, or something that you must do: · I'm sorry, I've forgotten your name.· It was an experience she would never forget.· It's his birthday tomorrow. I hope you haven't forgotten.forget what/where/how etc: · She forgot where she'd left her keys.forget (that): · I keep forgetting that you're allergic to chocolate.forget to do something: · Don't forget to call your mom tomorrow.forget about: · Tom had forgotten about Tanya coming to stay.forget all about something: · I forgot all about tomorrow's exam.completely forget: · I completely forgot about the meeting.I forget spoken (=I have forgotten): · She had this boyfriend - I forget his name - who was an actor.
to not be able to remember something that you want to remember: · "How did you get home after the party?" "I don't remember."· I was going to phone you, but I couldn't remember your number.· Brad doesn't remember much about his mother because she died when he was small.don't/can't remember doing something: · Has she got an invitation? I don't remember inviting her.don't remember/can't remember what/where/how etc: · I don't remember exactly what happened.· He couldn't remember where he put his coat.
formal to not be able to remember something: · He claims to have no recollection of the incident.· I have no recollection of living in Australia, as my family left for England when I was three years old.
if something that you must do, especially something that is not very important, slips your mind , you forget to do it because you are too busy thinking about other things: · "I'm sure we agreed to meet here.'' "Maybe it's just slipped his mind.''
to remember something with difficulty if you vaguely remember something, you can remember it slightly but not all the details are clear: · She still vaguely remembered her father, a distant figure who was barely ever there.vaguely remember that: · I do vaguely remember, now that Kerry mentions it, that Pete was at the party.vaguely remember what/how/who etc: · Bob, who'd been a vet in the army, vaguely remembered how to use a tourniquet.vaguely remember doing something: · He vaguely remembered meeting her in a club the night of the concert.
to be able to remember that something happened but not be able to remember the details clearly, especially because you did not notice the details at the time: · I do sort of remember meeting him, but I have only a hazy recollection.have a hazy/vague recollection of: · Davis claims he has only a vague recollection of the rape.have a hazy/vague recollection of doing something: · The next day she had a hazy recollection of getting drunk and dancing in a fountain.
if a name or word is on the tip of your tongue , you usually know it but have difficulty remembering it at the present moment: · His name's on the tip of my tongue. I'll think of it in a minute.· What was that place where they'd had dinner? It was on the tip of her tongue.
if something, especially a name, rings a bell , you remember that you have seen or heard it before but you are now not sure of the details: · The name rings a bell, but I can't place it at the moment.ring a bell with: · "Gentle Ben's Brewing Company" will ring a bell with anyone who has lived in Arizona.
COLLOCATIONS FROM THE ENTRY
(=not remember) I have no recollection of how I found my way there in the dark.
I have no recollection of how I found my way there in the dark. (=used when you are unsure if you remember correctly) To the best of my recollection, she drives a Mercedes. No one, to my recollection, gave a second thought to the risks involved.
COLLOCATIONS FROM OTHER ENTRIES To the best of my recollection, she drives a Mercedes. No one, to my recollection, gave a second thought to the risks involved.· I have only a vague recollection of what the house looked like.
COLLOCATIONS FROM THE CORPUSADJECTIVE· My dim recollection was that there was discussion of such questions in Mary Shelley's novel.
· One personal recollection confirms this point aptly.· I've only glanced through the book, but it contains a lot of personal recollections.
PHRASES FROM OTHER ENTRIES
1[countable] something from the past that you remember: - My dim recollection was that there was discussion of such questions in Mary Shelley's novel.
- I can remember nothing of them, but I have a vague feeling of having been well cared for.
My earliest recollections are of my mother bending over my cot.2[uncountable] an act of remembering somethinghave no recollection (of something) (=not remember) I have no recollection of how I found my way there in the dark.to (the best of) my recollection (=used when you are unsure if you remember correctly) To the best of my recollection, she drives a Mercedes. No one, to my recollection, gave a second thought to the risks involved.