Where does “retrace” come from?
Retrace comes from Middle French retracier, meaning to trace again, from the prefix re- and tracier, to trace or draw.
retrace (English): To trace again; To go back over something,...
Definitions
- To trace again; To go back over something,...
Ancestry of “retrace”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | French | retracer | to recount, to tell; to redraw, to draw again |
| 2 | French | ré- | re- |
| 3 | Latin | rĕ- | back, backwards |
| 4 | Latin | prōdūcō | to lead or bring forth, forward or out |
| 5 | Latin | prō- | forward direction, forward movement |
| 6 | Proto-Italic | *pro- | pro- see the Latin entry for further meanings |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | pro- | toward, forward |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | por- | to give birth; forward, through; going, passage |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | per- | before, in front; first; to go through |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | pr̥tós | passed , crossed |