retrace
/ɹiːˈtɹeɪs/verb, noun
retrace is spelled R-E-T-R-A-C-E: 7 letters and 2 syllables. It appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 42,145th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a verb, retrace means “To trace (a line, etc. in drawing) again” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in retrace?
| Letters | 7: R-E-T-R-A-C-E |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 2 million words; the 42,145th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Same letters |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is retrace?
Retrace appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 42,145th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce retrace?
- /ɹiːˈtɹeɪs/
As a noun (“The period when the beam of the cathode-ray tube returns to…”): /ˈɹiːtɹeɪs/.
Retrace has 2 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-retrace.wav, LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-retrace2.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with retrace?
No other word on PlainSpell ends in the same sounds as retrace.
Spelled with the same letters in another order: terrace, caterer.
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of retrace
- retraces present, singular, he/she/it, plural
- retracing participle, present
- retraced participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does retrace mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
verb
- 1
To trace (a line, etc. in drawing) again.
- 2
To go back over something, usually in an attempt at rediscovery.
He retraced his steps, and found his keys where he had dropped them.
- 3
To undergo retracement.
noun
- 1
The period when the beam of the cathode-ray tube returns to its initial horizontal position in order to start the next line of the display.
- 2
An instance of retracement.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Retrace in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense to trace again:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| German | nachvollziehen, zurückverfolgen |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does retrace come from?
From French retracer, from Middle French retracier.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).