Chinese word

追溯

Pronunciation

Pinyinzhuī sù

Meaning

  • verbtrace

Example

我们能追溯到问题的起因。wǒ men néng zhuī sù dào wèn tí de qǐ yīn

We can trace the problem back to its cause.

Illustration for 追溯 (trace)

More examples

记者试图追溯资料来源以确认消息的可靠性。jì zhě shì tú zhuī sù zī liào lái yuán yǐ què rèn xiāo xī de kě kào xìng

The reporter tried to trace the source of the information to confirm the reliability of the news.

Core concept

A backward path through evidence or time that reaches an origin, cause, or earlier effective date.

Common phrases

  • 追溯历史渊源zhuī sù lì shǐ yuān yuán

    trace historical origins

  • 追溯资料来源zhuī sù zī liào lái yuán

    trace the source of information

Similar words

溯源sù yuán: Finding the original source of something by tracing its history back to where it began.
回溯huí sù: Going back over past events to follow how they happened and changed.
查明chá míng: Making facts or causes clear through careful investigation and verification.
追查zhuī chá: Pursuing suspicious leads in a thorough investigation to discover what really happened.

Definition in Chinese

根据线索或证据向过去查找，以确定问题、事件或信息的起点。gēn jù xiàn suǒ huò zhèng jù xiàng guò qù chá zhǎo yǐ què dìng wèn tí shì jiàn huò xìn xī de qí diǎn

Word origin

追溯 (zhuīsù, "trace") joins the ideas of pursuing and moving upstream, so it describes working backward through evidence to an origin or earlier date.

Usage tips

  • In everyday conversation, this word has a formal, analytical tone, so it appears more naturally in explanations of causes, records, and historical sources than in quick chats.

Opposites

Related words

  • 追溯调查zhuī sù diào cháretrospective investigationnoun
  • 追溯条款zhuī sù tiáo kuǎnretroactive clausenoun

Word lists with this word