Etymograph

English

retrieve

Retrieve comes from Old French retrover ‘to find again’, and goes back to trover.

  1. Old Frenchc. 842–1400trover1‘to find’
  2. Old Frenchc. 842–1400retrover1‘to find again’
  3. Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600retruev-1
  4. Englishearliest quotation 1625retrieve1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English retrieve
  2. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1625, Ben[jamin] Jonson: “we'll bring Wax to the retrieve”.

Earlier history uncertain. See Wiktionary.

Lineage

  1. Old Frenchc. 842–1400troverWiktionary, English retrieve‘to find’
  2. Old Frenchc. 842–1400retroverWiktionary, English retrieve‘to find again’
  3. Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600retruev-Wiktionary, English retrieve
  4. Englishearliest quotation 1625retrieveWiktionary, English retrieve. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1625, Ben[jamin] Jonson: “we'll bring Wax to the retrieve”

The story

Recorded in Middle English c. 1410 as retreve (altered to retrive in the 16th century; modern form is from c. 1650), from Middle French retruev-, stem of Old French retrover (“to find again”, modern retrouver), itself from re- (‘again’) + trover (‘to find’), probably from Vulgar Latin *tropāre (‘to compose’).

Full etymology on Wiktionary

Linked words

through Old French trover ‘to find’

contrive, 3 more

Today it means

verb To regain or get back something.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “retrieve”. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.

Etymograph / Old French trover / retrieve

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