retrace

American  

[ri-trays] / rɪˈtreɪs /

verb (used with object)

• retraces,
  present (3rd person singular)
• retraced,
  past participle,  past
• retracing
  present participle

1. to trace backward; go back over.

   to retrace one's steps.

2. to go back over with the memory.

3. to go over again with the sight or attention.

4. re-trace.

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retrace British  

/ rɪˈtreɪs /

verb

1. to go back over (one's steps, a route, etc) again

   we retraced the route we took last summer

2. to go over (a past event) in the mind; recall

3. to go over (a story, account, etc) from the beginning

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• retracement
  noun
• nonretraceable
  adjective
• retraceable
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Participles

• retracing
  present
• retraced
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• retrace
  simple
• retraces
  simple
• have retraced
  perfect
• has retraced
  perfect
• am retracing
  progressive
• are retracing
  progressive
• is retracing
  progressive
• have been retracing
  perfect progressive
• has been retracing
  perfect progressive

Past

• retraced
  simple
• had retraced
  perfect
• was retracing
  progressive
• were retracing
  progressive
• had been retracing
  perfect progressive

Future

• will retrace
  simple
• will have retraced
  perfect
• will be retracing
  progressive
• will have been retracing
  perfect progressive

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Etymology

Origin of retrace

1690–1700; < French retracer, Middle French retracier, equivalent to re- re- + tracier to trace ¹

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Explanation

To retrace is to walk the same path again, or to follow a path someone else has taken. You could visit the town your ancestors came from and attempt to retrace their steps there. When you lose your glasses, some helpful person may ask you, "Did you retrace your steps?" What they're suggesting is that you walk everywhere you went earlier, checking as you go to see if you left them on a table or desk nearby. A detective will also retrace someone's steps to solve a crime, looking for clues while walking where the suspect walked. Trace means "outline," but also "follow a line or a path."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

retrace retraces retraced retracing

That has seen the U.S. rates market almost fully retrace the dovish repricing that followed last week’s softer inflation numbers, says Tony Sycamore, market strategist at IG Markets.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 22, 2026

“If the current leaders begin to consolidate or retrace, stronger participation from the broader market will likely be necessary to prevent the index from losing momentum.”

From Barron's ● Jun. 1, 2026

In other words, it’s reasonable to feel relief once crude oil prices retrace their journey back to where they were before the Iran war began.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 7, 2026

With Ukrainian airspace closed because of the war with Russia, they will then retrace their steps to Poland and fly to London for next week's second leg.

From BBC ● Apr. 30, 2026

Maybe if I retrace her steps, I can find something to explain what she was hiding.

From "How to Disappear Completely" by Ali Standish

Mr. Thompson retraces the doomed hike on a sunny September day.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 29, 2026

The episode retraces his steps alongside forensic pathologist Richard Shepherd, who carried out Jay's postmortem when his body was returned to the UK.

From BBC ● Sep. 30, 2026

Based on Homer's epic, Nolan's film retraces the hero Odysseus in a perilous journey to his home on the island of Ithaca after the Trojan War in the 12th century BCE.

From Barron's ● Aug. 18, 2026

Documentarian Geeta Gandbhir retraces this slow-moving tragedy through the body camera footage of the exasperated officers who know that the caller, not the children, is the problem.

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 10, 2026

“So, every seventy-five years, he retraces the journey, hoping to reunite with her.”

From "The Last Cuentista" by Donna Barba Higuera

To determine when the ability developed and how it changed over time, the team retraced lactoferrin's evolutionary history and reconstructed versions belonging to its extinct ancestors.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 28, 2026

Bitcoin retraced some recent losses to climb 0.1% to $77,491.83.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 2, 2026

The oil market did a “good job in making up for the supply cut off” from Iran, which is why prices retraced so sharply, Edward Meir, an analyst at financial-services platform Marex, told MarketWatch.

From MarketWatch ● Jun. 30, 2026

And then he retraced his steps across the 150-foot wide thoroughfare that knifes through the heart of the city along what once was the Red Car line of the Pacific Electric Railway.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 20, 2026

Then she retraced her steps, back under the hedge, along the dusty yellow drive, around the back of the shops, back to her house.

From "Coraline" by Neil Gaiman

It’s the exhibition’s formal exit, and the only way to avoid it requires retracing one’s steps and leaving via the entrance.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 26, 2026

Debbie said retracing her son's steps helped her, because "we could look at the terrain in more detail".

From BBC ● Sep. 30, 2026

The dollar is currently around 159.30 yen, retracing roughly half its original gains.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 11, 2026

But Mr. Devine, who served as Mr. Sanders’s chief strategist, isn’t merely retracing the journey.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 26, 2026

They tried retracing Harry’s route from the library, wandering around the dark passageways for nearly an hour.

From "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" by J.K. Rowling

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