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recovered memory
noun
: a memory of a traumatic event (such as sexual abuse) experienced typically during childhood that is forgotten and then recalled many years later that is sometimes held to be an invalid or false remembrance generated by outside influence
Examples of recovered memory in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Spurred on by the controversy over recovered memory, other cognitive scientists found that false memory is a normal phenomenon.
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Kat McGowan, Discover Magazine, 31 July 2010
Even more unusual, Eileen told the police that in her recovered memory, the murderer was her own father, George Franklin.
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BostonGlobe.com, 4 Oct. 2021
Never before had recovered memory been used in a criminal prosecution.
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Lorraine Ali Television Critic, Los Angeles Times, 27 Aug. 2021
Doesn't mean there are lot of instances where recovered memory was false and innocent people went to prison.
—
Fox News, 25 Sep. 2018
Saved from suicide by Gordon Dunn (Martin Donovan), a psychologist who has invented a machine that recovers memories, Sam turns into an amateur sleuth when Dunn also winds up expired.
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Jeannette Catsoulis, New York Times, 7 Sep. 2017
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'recovered memory.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
First Known Use
1941, in the meaning defined above
Dictionary Entries Near recovered memory
Cite this Entry
“Recovered memory.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/recovered%20memory. Accessed 19 Aug. 2024.
Medical Definition
recovered memory
noun
: a forgotten memory of a traumatic event (as sexual abuse) experienced typically during childhood and recalled many years later that is sometimes held to be an invalid or false remembrance generated by outside influence
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