hark(en) back to (something)

hark(en) back to (something)

1. To cause one to think of something. That song harkens back to an earlier time in my life.2. To have originated or begun as something. You know, our modern cell phones hark back to those old rotary phones you like to make fun of.3. To revisit something mentioned earlier. Before we get too upset, let's all harken back to the real reason we're here today.See also: back

hark(en) back to something

 1. to have originated as something; to have started out as something. (Harken is an older word meaning "pay heed to.") The word icebox harks back to refrigerators that were cooled by ice. Our modern breakfast cereals hark back to the porridge and gruel of our ancestors. 2. to remind one of something. Seeing a horse and buggy in the park harks back to the time when horses drew milk wagons. Sally says it harkens back to the time when everything was delivered by horse-drawn wagons.See also: back, hark

hark back

Return to a previous point, as in Let us hark back briefly to my first statement. This expression originally alluded to hounds retracing their course when they have lost their quarry's scent. It may be dying out. [First half of 1800s] See also: back, hark