backtrack

See also: back-track

English

Etymology

From back +‎ track.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈbæk.tɹæk/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

Noun

backtrack (plural backtracks)

1. The act of backtracking.

Translations

the act of backtracking

Bulgarian: отстъпка (bg) (otstǎpka) Finnish: paluu (fi), peruutus (fi) Greek: οπισθοδρόμηση (el) f (opisthodrómisi) Italian: retrocessione (it) f Polish: cofanie się n Spanish: retroceso (es) m

Verb

backtrack (third-person singular simple present backtracks, present participle backtracking, simple past and past participle backtracked)

1. To retrace one's steps.

   I dropped my sunglasses and had to backtrack to find them.

   • 2008, Lauren Beukes, Moxyland - Page 86:

     Trophy in paw, I invest another hour twenty backtracking to find my original spawn-in spot, and reduce Fluffoki and her little friendlings to so much dead flesh, although sorry to say, it being a kids' game, they die in splatters of sparks rather than [...]

2. To repeat or review work already done.

   If we backtrack through this problem, maybe we can figure out where we went wrong.

3. (aviation) To taxi down an active runway in the opposite direction to that being used for takeoff.

   Speedbird One: enter and backtrack Runway 27 Left.

4. To exercise a racehorse around the racetrack in the opposite direction to that in which races are run.
5. To go back on or withdraw a statement.

   Synonym: backpedal

   • 2020 August 22, Adam Kilgore, “Baseball’s unwritten rules may be softening, but they haven’t gone away”, in The Washington Post‎:

     Woodward’s mild rebuke of Tatis received backlash from most players who spoke out, and even Woodward backtracked and reexplained himself the next day.

   • 2022 December 1, Ryan Pearson, “Nintendo Backtracks On Claim They Didn't Hear Of Performance Issues In 'Pokémon Scarlet & Violet' And Releases Much-Needed Patch”, in Bounding Into Comics‎, archived from the original on 5 January 2023:
   • 2024 October 6, Justine McDaniel and Anumita Kaur, “Harris’s own ballot will include crime measure dividing Democrats in Calif.”, in The Washington Post‎:

     “You saw the disaster that followed when Trump spoke out against the Florida [amendment],” said Trish Crouse, a political science professor at the University of New Haven. “He found himself having to backtrack and reexplain himself.”

Derived terms

• backtracker
• backtracking (noun)

Translations

retracing one's steps

Bulgarian: връщам се (vrǎštam se), отстъпвам (bg) (otstǎpvam) Catalan: tornar-se'n enrere, desfer el camí, retrocedir (ca), recular (ca) Danish: gå tilbage Finnish: palata (fi), palata samaa tietä, mennä takaisin French: retourner sur ses pas (fr), revenir sur ses pas (fr) Italian: arretrare (it), retrocedere (it) Occitan: tornar sul rèire-pè Polish: cofać się impf, wycofać się pf Russian: отходи́ть (ru) (otxodítʹ), отступа́ть (ru) (otstupátʹ) Spanish: retroceder (es) Swedish: gå tillbaka

reviewing previous work

Finnish: käydä läpi Italian: analizzare (it), ripassare (it), rivedere (it) Polish: robić ponownie impf Spanish: repasar (es)

taxiing the opposite way down a runway

Finnish: rullata takaisinpäin Italian: parcheggiare contropista Polish: kołować wstecz impf

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