retrieve
UK[rɪˈtriːv]US[rɪˈtriːv]
v
to get or bring something back from somewhere
v
to find and get back data or information stored in a computer
v
to make a situation, a loss, or a defeat better; to recover
Morpheme Breakdown
re
trieve
re
again
trieve
find
Etymology
the word "retrieve" entered english in the 15th century from the old french verb retrouver, meaning "to find again". the french term is a combination of the prefix re-, meaning "again", and trover, meaning "to find". the root trover itself descends from the late latin tropare, which meant "to compose" or "to invent", a meaning that evolved into the concept of "discovering" or "finding". thus, the literal sense of "to find again" has been preserved in english, extending from recovering physical objects to accessing digital information and recovering from losses.
Analysis
Structure: re (again) + trieve (find)
re- (prefix of Latin origin, meaning "again" or "back"). -trieve (from Old French trover, "to find", ultimately from Latin tropare, "to compose, find").
Examples
the dog was trained to retrieve the ball.
special software is used to retrieve the deleted files.
the team fought hard to retrieve the game from a three-goal deficit.