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untread

American  
[uhn-tred] / ʌnˈtrɛd /

verb (used with object)

untrod, untrodden, untrod, untreading
  1. to go back through in the same steps.


untread British  
/ ʌnˈtrɛd /

verb

  1. rare (tr) to retrace (a course, path, etc)

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of untread

First recorded in 1585–95; un- 2 + tread


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.

See Examples For:

Often it was untread ground in criminal law.

From Washington Post ● Mar. 22, 2022

To him replied the stranger wearily: Where is the horse that doth untread again His tedious measures with the unbated fire That he did pace them first?

From A Cotswold Village by J. Arthur Gibbs

There are moments when I would untread the paths that I have trod.

From Anthology of Massachusetts Poets by William Stanley Braithwaite

The question was formally debated before the Council, whether, even at this point, they should untread their steps, and, throwing themselves upon the Czarina's 30 mercy, return to their old allegiance.

From De Quincey's Revolt of the Tartars by William Edward Simonds

The untrod glacier is made accessible only by the damage already done to the enormous ice sheets that cover the continent.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 14, 2023

As we worked to complete Phase 1, and now are seeking partners to complete Phase 2, we find ourselves continuing to navigate previously untrod territory.

From Washington Post ● Aug. 19, 2022

Leavy’s conceit allows her to stake out some untrod turf.

From New York Times ● Oct. 23, 2018

Tokaji adds, though, that there simply is no telling: “There is no precedent on the books. This is untrod ground.”

From Time ● Apr. 19, 2016

When to your virgin heart, unstirred, ungiven, Upon the quiet mountain side untrod, The sudden naked fire came down from heaven, Burning you with the very breath of God, Was the sun lost?

From Poems by Muriel Stuart

He said he had learned it was "of utmost importance to explore untrodden places... and doors to rooms we have never seen before".

From BBC ● Apr. 17, 2026

This is who he was, and he would continue on this untrodden path until he was physically unable to.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 18, 2025

And today, we are products of choosing the untrodden path.

From Seattle Times ● Jul. 7, 2023

Relocating across the street already requires some heavy lifting; living somewhere truly new involves as much nostalgia for old stomping grounds as excitement at exploring untrodden territory.

From Washington Post ● Apr. 26, 2022

They went out of the dusty, crowded city, back to the lean purity of the untrodden hills and woodlands.

From "Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes" by Edith Hamilton

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