retrieve
Americanverb (used with object)
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to recover or regain.
to retrieve the stray ball.
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to bring back to a former and better state; restore.
to retrieve one's fortunes.
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to make amends for.
to retrieve an error.
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to make good; repair.
to retrieve a loss.
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Hunting. (of hunting dogs) to fetch (killed or wounded game).
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to draw back or reel in (a fishing line).
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to rescue; save.
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(in tennis, squash, handball, etc.) to make an in-bounds return of (a shot requiring running with the hand extended).
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Computers. to locate and read (data) from storage, as for display on a monitor.
verb (used without object)
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Hunting. to retrieve game.
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to retrieve a fishing line.
noun
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an act of retrieving; recovery.
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the possibility of recovery.
verb
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to get or fetch back again; recover
he retrieved his papers from various people's drawers
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to bring back to a more satisfactory state; revive
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to extricate from trouble or danger; rescue or save
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to recover or make newly available (stored information) from a computer system
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(also intr) (of a dog) to find and fetch (shot game)
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tennis squash badminton to return successfully (a shot difficult to reach)
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to recall; remember
noun
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the act of retrieving
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the chance of being retrieved
Related Words
See recover.
Other Word Forms
- nonretrievable adjective
- retrievability noun
- retrievable adjective
- retrievably adverb
- unretrievable adjective
- unretrieved adjective
Etymology
Origin of retrieve
First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English retreven, from Middle French retroev-, retreuv-, tonic stem of retrouver “to find again,” equivalent to re- re- + trouver “to find”; trover
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.
In the Golden State Killer case, investigators retrieved old DNA processed in the Ventura County crime lab connected to one of his crimes.
From Los Angeles Times
They then retrieved volcanic rock samples from several parts of the trench system using a chain bag dredge.
From Science Daily
To retrieve the organism, the team drilled a 25-meter ice core from a section of the cave called the Great Hall, capturing a frozen record spanning 13,000 years.
From Science Daily
The golden doodle/mini poodle was placed in Animal Protective Services for 10 days, a mandatory period to allow the owner to retrieve the dog.
From BBC
Officials have not yet released the identities of any victims, and extreme weather in the area has continued to stymie efforts to search for the missing body, or even to retrieve those already confirmed dead.
From Los Angeles Times
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.
