retry

1 of 2

verb

re·​try (ˌ)rē-ˈtrī 

retried; retrying

1

transitive + intransitive : to try (something) again to see if it is successful, working, or satisfactory

He retried downloading the program.

Turn the device and the router off for at least ten seconds, then turn them back on and retry the connection.

—Ankit Banerjee

a restaurant that might be worth retrying

After a certain number of failed attempts, the system will stop retrying.

2

transitive law : to try (someone or something) judicially for a second time

Prosecutors decided to retry the case.

retry a defendant

He was retried on the manslaughter charge.

retry

2 of 2

noun

re·​try ˈrē-ˌtrī 

plural retries

: a new attempt or try

The website loaded on the third retry.

Examples of retry in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

Michael Clark was released from prison in 2025 after his lawyers argued that DNA evidence in the case was mishandled by Woods, but prosecutors are seeking to retry him. — ABC News, 23 June 2026

Los Angeles District Attorney Nathan Hochman said his office will consider whether to retry the second-degree murder count in the future. — Julie Sharp, CBS News, 9 June 2026

Noun

These include retry limits, rate controls, circuit breakers and dependency protection mechanisms. — Sibasis Padhi, Forbes.com, 8 June 2026

For example, when a task failed mid-action, such as picking up an object unsuccessfully, the system could recognize the failure and retry without prior training on that specific scenario. — Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 29 Apr. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

Verb

circa 1673, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun

1960, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for retry

• apply
• awry
• belie
• bely
• bigeye
• bonsai
• buckeye
• comply
• coxae
• decry
• defy
• deny

Legal Definition

retry

transitive verb

re·​try

ˌrē-ˈtrī

retried; retrying

: to try again