backtrack
Americanverb (used without object)
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to return over the same course or route.
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to withdraw from an undertaking, position, etc.; reverse a policy.
verb
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to return by the same route by which one has come
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to retract or reverse one's opinion, action, policy, etc
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of backtrack
Explanation
When you backtrack, you return somewhere you've already been, or retrace steps you've already taken. You might backtrack to find something you lost on your way down the sidewalk. When you walk out the door and realize you must have put your keys down somewhere, you'll probably backtrack through your house, looking for them. You can also backtrack in a figurative way, changing an opinion or a stance on something: "The city promised to build a new library, but now that the budget is so tight I bet they'll backtrack" The original use of the word referred to a technique in fox hunting.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Backtrack a few years, though and he was head of Cargill’s refined oils trading operation in the Western hemisphere — with the additional responsibility of managing the company’s commodity business in Venezuela.
From MarketWatch • Jan. 8, 2026
While "Backtrack" may be somewhat contrived in its plotting, the jump scares and Brody’s moody performance remain effective.
From Salon • Feb. 27, 2025
Backtrack on 45th to Latona then walk a block south to Northeast 44th Street.
From Seattle Times • Jun. 29, 2022
Saban Films acquired the British rom-com Man Up and the Adrian Brody thriller Backtrack, while A24 also doubled up with purchases of Mojave, starring Oscar Issac, and the James Franco vehicle The Adderall Diaries.
From Forbes • Apr. 28, 2015
“It’s not just the older generation listening to it again and getting back into it again,” Backtrack Records owner Rob Stevens said.
From Washington Times • Apr. 18, 2015
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
