backpedal vs backtrack

backpedal

verb
  • To step backwards. 

  • To pedal backwards on a bicycle. 

  • To distance oneself from an earlier claim or statement; back off from an idea. 

backtrack

verb
  • To retrace one's steps. 

  • To exercise a racehorse around the racetrack in the opposite direction to that in which races are run. 

  • To taxi down an active runway in the opposite direction to that being used for takeoff. 

  • To repeat or review work already done. 

noun
  • the act of backtracking 

How often have the words backpedal and backtrack occurred in a corpus of books? (source: Google Ngram Viewer )