retrace
verb (used with object)
to trace backward; go back over.
were retracing
-
past progressiveof retrace.past progressive
Used to describe an ongoing action or continuous state that was happening at a specific time in the past.
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.
When Welsh writer Iain Sinclair set out for the Peruvian Amazon with his daughter in 2019, the pair were retracing a journey his great-grandfather, a traveling planter and writer, described in an 1895 book.
From Washington Post ● Nov. 4, 2021
“It was like we were retracing their steps,” she said.
From New York Times ● Aug. 17, 2015
They were retracing Charles Howard’s youthful journey, thirty years later.
From "Seabiscuit: An American Legend" by Laura Hillenbrand
They had turned round and were retracing their way toward Merriwell and his friends without noticing it.
From Frank Merriwell's Reward by Burt L. Standish
Once more we were retracing our way through the long, winding streets of the city, and then we emerged through the gates into the open country beyond.
From Sidelights on Chinese Life by J. (John) Macgowan
