Meaning & use

retrace

verb·Everyday

To go back over a route or sequence of events in the same order as before.

See it in a sentence

We retraced our steps along the trail after realizing we had missed the turnoff.

Detectives retraced the victim's movements from the night before the crime.

A note on using this word

Retrace commonly appears in the fixed phrase 'retrace one's steps,' meaning to return the way one came.

Words with a similar meaning

revisitbacktrack

Choose a synonym to suit the sentence. Meanings can overlap without being identical.

Make it your own

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