trail
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trail¹
- /tɹeɪl/
Rhymes with -eɪl
Where it comes from
From Middle English trailen, from Old French trailler (“to tow; pick up the scent of a quarry”), from Vulgar Latin *tragulāre (“to drag”), from Latin tragula (“dragnet, javelin thrown by a strap”), probably related to Latin trahere (“to pull, drag along”).
verb trails · trailing · trailed
- To follow behind (someone or something); to tail (someone or something). The hunters trailed their prey deep into the woods.
- To drag (something) behind on the ground. You'll get your coat all muddy if you trail it around like that.
- To leave (a trail of). He walked into the house, soaking wet, and trailed water all over the place.
- To show a trailer of (a film, TV show etc.); to release or publish a preview of (a report etc.) in advance of the full publication. His new film was trailed on TV last night.
- To hang or drag loosely behind; to move with a slow sweeping motion. The bride's long dress trailed behind her as she walked down the aisle.
- To run or climb like certain plants. The flowers glowed red and golden: snapdragons and sunflowers, and nasturtians trailing all over the turf walls and peeping in at the round windows.
- To drag oneself lazily or reluctantly along. Our parents marched to church and we trailed behind.
- To be losing, to be behind in a competition. Neil Lennon and his players have, in almost no time at all, roared back from trailing Rangers by 15 points in November to ending the year two points clear.
- To carry (a firearm) with the breech near the ground and the upper part inclined forward, the piece being held by the right hand near the middle.
- To create a trail in. The sun shone on burnished bodies and arm-bands, and robes of beaver trailed the grass as majestic fellows trod back and forth in the passion of eloquence.
- To travel by following or creating trails. Trailed three miles down the North side and encamped early, making thirteen miles trailed to-day.
- To transport (livestock) by herding it along a trail. One operator on the Boise Forest in Idaho reports that where he formerly marketed 80-pound lambs after trailing them 10 days from the allotment, his lambs now often tip the scales at 100 pounds or better, mainly because only one day is required to transport an entire shipment to the railroad through
- To take advantage of the ignorance of; to impose upon. I presently perceived she was (what is vernacularly termed) trailing Mrs. Dent; that is, playing on her ignorance.
noun trails
- The track or indication marking the route followed by something that has passed, such as the footprints of animal on land or the contrail of an airplane in the sky. The trail has gone cold.
-
A route for travel over land, especially a narrow, unpaved pathway for use by hikers, horseback riders, etc.
Similar: dirt track, footpath, path, track
- A route or circuit generally. Politicians are on the campaign trail in preparation for this year's election.
- A trailer broadcast on television for a forthcoming film or programme.
- A walk in which all the edges are distinct.
- The horizontal distance from where the wheel touches the ground to where the steering axis intersects the ground.
Trail²
proper noun
- A city in British Columbia, Canada.
- A city in Polk County, Minnesota, United States.
- A census-designated place in Jackson County, Oregon, United States.
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: chase, entrain, go after, chase after, get behind, trudge, hang back, drop behind, tag, track, shack, drag, dog, tail, lead, pass
Translations
Every language
verb drag behind
| Español | arrastrar |
|---|---|
| 中文 | 拖 tuō |
| Português | arrastar |
| Français | traîner |
| Deutsch | schleppen, schleifen, ziehen |
| Italiano | trascinare, trainare, strascicare |
| Русский | тяну́ть tjanútʹ, волочи́ть voločítʹ, тащи́ть taščítʹ |
| العربية | جَرَّ jarra |
verb follow behind
| Español | seguir |
|---|---|
| 中文 | 跟踪 gēnzōng, 追踪 zhuīzōng |
| हिन्दी | पीछा करना pīchā karnā |
| Português | seguir |
| Français | pister, suivre |
| Deutsch | folgen, verfolgen, nachstellen, nacheilen, nachsetzen |
| Italiano | pedinare, seguire, inseguire |
| Русский | идти по следу idti po sledu, высле́живать vysléživatʹ, вы́следить výsleditʹ |
verb leave (a trail of)
| Deutsch | zurücklassen, eine Spur hinter sich lassen |
|---|---|
| Italiano | lasciar tracce di |
noun signs of something/someone has passed previously
| Español | rastro, pista |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 흔적 heunjeok, 자국 jaguk, 발자국 baljaguk |
| 日本語 | 跡 ato, 痕跡 konseki, 足跡 ashiato |
| 中文 | 足跡 /足迹 zújì, 蹤跡 /踪迹 zōngjì, 痕跡 /痕迹 hénjì |
| Português | rasto, rastro |
| Français | piste, traces |
| Deutsch | Spur |
| Italiano | strascico, traccia, pista |
| Ελληνικά | ίχνος íchnos |
| Română | urmă |
| Русский | след sled |
| العربية | أَثَر ʔaṯar |
noun route for travel over land
| Español | sendero, senda |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 등산로 deungsanno, 트레일 teureil, 길 gil, 작은 길 jageun gil, 오솔길 osolgil |
| 日本語 | 小道 komichi, 登山道 tozandō, 山道, トレイル toreiru, 小路 komichi |
| 中文 | 路徑 /路径 lùjìng, 小徑 /小径 xiǎojìng, 山道 shāndào |
| हिन्दी | रास्ता rāstā |
| Português | trilha |
| Français | piste, sentier |
| Deutsch | Pfad, Weg, Trail |
| Italiano | sentiero, pista |
| Ελληνικά | μονοπάτι monopáti |
| Română | potecă, cărare |
| Русский | тропа́ tropá, тропи́нка tropínka, стёжка stjóžka, доро́жка doróžka |
| العربية | مَسْلَك maslak |
noun graph theory: walk with distinct edges
| עברית | מסילה |
|---|
Talk about this word "trail." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/trail. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. trail. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/trail "trail." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/trail.Cite this
@misc{trail_2026,
title = {trail},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/trail},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
