Dictionary

trail en · NOUN

Pronunciation

• /tɹeɪl/
• (Southern-England) audio
• (US) audio
• trāl

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *dʰregʰ-der.? Latin trahō Proto-Indo-European *-tḗr Proto-Indo-European *-trom Proto-Indo-European *-tlom, *-dʰlom Latin -ula Latin trāgula Proto-Indo-European *-h₂ Proto-Indo-European *-éh₂ Proto-Indo-European *-yéti Proto-Indo-European *-eh₂yéti Proto-Indo-European *-h₂tiinflu. Proto-Italic *-ājō Proto-Italic *-āō Latin -ō Vulgar Latin *tragulāre Old French traillerbor. Middle English trailen English trail 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”).

Meanings

1. 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.
   • data trail, paper trail
   • condensation trail
   • The trail has gone cold.
2. A route for travel over land, especially a narrow, unpaved pathway for use by hikers, horseback riders, etc.
3. A route or circuit generally.
   • Politicians are on the campaign trail in preparation for this year's election.
4. A trailer broadcast on television for a forthcoming film or programme.
5. A walk in which all the edges are distinct.
6. The horizontal distance from where the wheel touches the ground to where the steering axis intersects the ground.

Forms

Deriveds

bridle trail (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · trailable (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · nature trail (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · trailcam (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · trailsman (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · rabbit trail (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · trailway (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · trailblazer (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · contrail (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · trail bike (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · trailside (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · hot on the trail (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · deer trail (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · treasure trail (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · trail rope (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · happy trail (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · cross-trail (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · firetrail (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · snail trail (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · entrail (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · trailmaker (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · trailery (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · trail hunt (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · trail hitter (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · trail mix (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · trailless (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · throw off the trail (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · rail-trail (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · chemtrail (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · bunny trail (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · blazoned trail (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · trail angel (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · trail map (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · trail-blazing (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · backtrail (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · owl hoot trail (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · trailhead (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · audit trail (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · paper-trail (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · traily (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · vapo(u)r trail (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · hippie trail (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · hash trail (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · trailbreaker (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · trail head (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · paper trail (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · blaze a trail (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · trailblazing (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · trim trail (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · sawdust trail (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · wombat trail (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · trail hand (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · trail name (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · hit the trail (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · distrail (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · trail of tears (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · trail boat (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · skid trail (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · trail braking (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · monkey trail (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · hoot owl trail (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · mistrail (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · light trail (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · betrail (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · trailmaking (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · hike the Appalachian Trail (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · Eulerian trail (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · trailwear (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · condensation trail (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · star trail (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · data trail (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · trailmaster (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · rail trail (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · off-trail (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · trailhand (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · dissipation trail (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · cybertrail (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · vapor trail (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · trail camera (Terms derived from trail (noun)) · trail ridge scrub grasshopper (Terms derived from trail (noun))

Descendants

Trail · трейл

Relateds

path · track

Synonyms

path · spoor · dirt track · sign · track · footpath

Translations (147)

ca corriol (route for travel over land) · sv spår (signs of something/someone has passed previously) · ja 足跡 (signs of something/someone has passed previously) · de Trail (route for travel over land) · tr iz (signs of something/someone has passed previously) · hy արահետ (route for travel over land) · cmn 痕跡 /痕迹 (signs of something/someone has passed previously) · it traccia (signs of something/someone has passed previously) · fi polku (route for travel over land) · es pista (signs of something/someone has passed previously) · cs cestička (route for travel over land) · ca pista (signs of something/someone has passed previously) · tr çığır (route for travel over land) · nl route (route for travel over land) · sk chodníček (route for travel over land) · ro potecă (route for travel over land) · ja 小道 (route for travel over land) · la trāmes (route for travel over land) · mi paparahi (signs of something/someone has passed previously) · bg пъте́ка (route for travel over land) · sl sled (signs of something/someone has passed previously) · ka ნაკვალევი (signs of something/someone has passed previously) · ko 자국 (signs of something/someone has passed previously) · sh тра̑г (signs of something/someone has passed previously) · el μονοπάτι (route for travel over land) · te జాడ (signs of something/someone has passed previously) · sq vazhdë (signs of something/someone has passed previously) · la vestīgia (signs of something/someone has passed previously) · it pista (route for travel over land) · uk сте́жка (route for travel over land) · uk стежи́на (route for travel over land) · es sendero (route for travel over land) · ja 登山道 (route for travel over land) · cs stopa (signs of something/someone has passed previously) · hi रास्ता (route for travel over land) · pox staʒ́ă (route for travel over land) · mk трага (signs of something/someone has passed previously) · nl pad (route for travel over land) · ja 山道 (route for travel over land) · mi makatea (signs of something/someone has passed previously) · ja トレイル (route for travel over land) · cmn 小徑 /小径 (route for travel over land) · apw ʼintin (route for travel over land) · sv stig (route for travel over land) · uk слід (signs of something/someone has passed previously) · fa مالرو (route for travel over land) · tr patika (route for travel over land) · uk стежи́нка (route for travel over land) · ko 작은 길 (route for travel over land) · ja 跡 (signs of something/someone has passed previously) · pt rasto (signs of something/someone has passed previously) · pl trop (signs of something/someone has passed previously) · cmn 足跡 /足迹 (signs of something/someone has passed previously) · de Spur (signs of something/someone has passed previously) · sh stàza (route for travel over land) · he מסילה (graph theory: walk with distinct edges) · eo vojsulko (route for travel over land) · it strascico (signs of something/someone has passed previously) · be сце́жка (route for travel over land) · pt trilha (route for travel over land) · ba һуҡмаҡ (route for travel over land) · cmn 山道 (route for travel over land) · nl spoor (signs of something/someone has passed previously) · ota رسم (signs of something/someone has passed previously) · da tur (graph theory: walk with distinct edges) · ar مَسْلَك (route for travel over land) · ka ბილიკი (route for travel over land) · ka კვალი (signs of something/someone has passed previously) · ru стёжка (route for travel over land) · es senda (route for travel over land) · ko 흔적 (signs of something/someone has passed previously) · sl pešpot (route for travel over land) · cs chodníček (route for travel over land) · ko 발자국 (signs of something/someone has passed previously) · hy շավիղ (route for travel over land) · fr chasse (horizontal distance) · ca pista (route for travel over land) · be след (signs of something/someone has passed previously) · tew pʼôe (route for travel over land) · pl ślad (signs of something/someone has passed previously) · fi reitti (route for travel over land) · hu nyom (signs of something/someone has passed previously) · ro urmă (signs of something/someone has passed previously) · es rastro (signs of something/someone has passed previously) · orv слѣдъ (signs of something/someone has passed previously) · fr traces (signs of something/someone has passed previously) · ko 등산로 (route for travel over land) · ko 길 (route for travel over land) · da spor (signs of something/someone has passed previously) · de Pfad (route for travel over land) · bg следа́ (signs of something/someone has passed previously) · mi makenu (route for travel over land) · de Nachlauf (horizontal distance) · fa گذر (route for travel over land) · fr sentier (route for travel over land) · cu слѣдъ (signs of something/someone has passed previously) · mk патека (route for travel over land) · pdt Spoa (signs of something/someone has passed previously) · gl sendeiro (route for travel over land) · sk stopa (signs of something/someone has passed previously) · ru доро́жка (route for travel over land) · ko 트레일 (route for travel over land) · tg пайраҳа (route for travel over land) · el ίχνος (signs of something/someone has passed previously) · it pista (signs of something/someone has passed previously) · tr çığır (signs of something/someone has passed previously) · mi ara (route for travel over land) · de Weg (route for travel over land) · fr piste (route for travel over land) · ru тропа́ (route for travel over land) · izh troppa (route for travel over land) · fi jälki (signs of something/someone has passed previously) · ca rastre (signs of something/someone has passed previously) · la semita (route for travel over land) · fr piste (signs of something/someone has passed previously) · cs stezka (route for travel over land) · af spoor (signs of something/someone has passed previously) · ttj ekirale class 7 (signs of something/someone has passed previously) · tl bagnos (signs of something/someone has passed previously) · ota یول (route for travel over land) · tr parkur (route for travel over land) · it sentiero (route for travel over land) · mi maheu (route for travel over land) · fi eräreitti (route for travel over land) · ru след (signs of something/someone has passed previously) · sq tragë (signs of something/someone has passed previously) · ko 오솔길 (route for travel over land) · sh trȃg (signs of something/someone has passed previously) · ja 小路 (route for travel over land) · sk cestička (route for travel over land) · gd slighe (route for travel over land) · pl ścieżka (route for travel over land) · ru тропи́нка (route for travel over land) · tg пайраҳача (route for travel over land) · ro cărare (route for travel over land) · ja 痕跡 (signs of something/someone has passed previously) · ota چیغیر (route for travel over land) · ar أَثَر (signs of something/someone has passed previously) · cmn 蹤跡 /踪迹 (signs of something/someone has passed previously) · bg but see прост път (graph theory: walk with distinct edges) · te జాడ (route for travel over land) · sh ста̀за (route for travel over land) · cmn 路徑 /路径 (route for travel over land) · pt rastro (signs of something/someone has passed previously) · sv led (route for travel over land) · tsg dan (route for travel over land) · grc ἴχνος (signs of something/someone has passed previously)

trail en · VERB

Pronunciation

• /tɹeɪl/
• (Southern-England) audio
• (US) audio
• trāl

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *dʰregʰ-der.? Latin trahō Proto-Indo-European *-tḗr Proto-Indo-European *-trom Proto-Indo-European *-tlom, *-dʰlom Latin -ula Latin trāgula Proto-Indo-European *-h₂ Proto-Indo-European *-éh₂ Proto-Indo-European *-yéti Proto-Indo-European *-eh₂yéti Proto-Indo-European *-h₂tiinflu. Proto-Italic *-ājō Proto-Italic *-āō Latin -ō Vulgar Latin *tragulāre Old French traillerbor. Middle English trailen English trail 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”).

Meanings

1. (transitive) To follow behind (someone or something); to tail (someone or something).
   • The hunters trailed their prey deep into the woods.
   • Nine months before she was taken in October 1994, Jodi was out jogging in Mason City before realizing she was being trailed. She noted the stalker was driving a black truck and reported the matter to the authorities. 2026 August 10, Nicholas Muhoro, “Jodi Huisentruit, 27, Vanished From Her Apartment Parking Lot in 1995. Police Found Signs of a Struggle”, in Skip Boring, archived from the original on 11 Aug 2026:
2. (transitive) To drag (something) behind on the ground.
   • "I saw your brother—I saw your brother," he said, nodding his head, as Archer lagged past him, trailing his spade, and scowling at the old gentleman in spectacles. 1922 October 26, Virginia Woolf, chapter 1, in Jacob’s Room, Richmond, London: […] Leonard & Virginia Woolf at the Hogarth Press, →OCLC; republished London: The Hogarth Press, 1960, →OCLC:
   • Our little life is but a gust That bends the branches of thy tree, And trails its blossoms in the dust! 1896, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, The Poetical Works of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, page 287:
   • You'll get your coat all muddy if you trail it around like that.
3. (transitive) To leave (a trail of).
   • He walked into the house, soaking wet, and trailed water all over the place.
4. (transitive) 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.
   • There were no surprises in this morning's much-trailed budget statement.
5. (intransitive) To hang or drag loosely behind; to move with a slow sweeping motion.
   • Cumberland sausage is about half as thick as your wrist and extends in a single rope several feet long, so that Mistrootchinson [Mister Hutchinson, the butcher], having weighed you one end while the other trailed over the edge of the scale, would then cut it for you like a draper selling a length of tape. 1980, AA Book of British Villages, Drive Publications Ltd, page 62:
   • Her curly hair trailed along her shoulders and down her back.
   • The bride's long dress trailed behind her as she walked down the aisle.
   • Even now I behold a sign, A threatening of wrath divine, A watery, wandering star, through whose streaming hair, and the white Unfolding garments of light, That trail behind it afar, The constellations shine! 1871, The Divine Tragedy, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow:
6. (intransitive) 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. 1954 July 29, J.R.R. Tolkien, “I: A Long-Expected Party”, in The Fellowship of the Ring (The Lord of the Rings; 1), →ISBN:
7. (intransitive) To drag oneself lazily or reluctantly along.
   • Our parents marched to church and we trailed behind.
8. 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. 2011 December 29, Keith Jackson, “SPL: Celtic 1 Rangers 0”, in Daily Record:
9. 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.
10. To create a trail in.
    • Because of the potential damages caused by social trailing, regulations stipulate that all permits are void when a group obtains multiple permits for the same campground or use area for the same night. 1975, Federal Procedural Forms, Lawyers Edition - Volume 14, page 241:
    • […] was no mean judge of racing and, having a suspicion of the possible result, she secreted a lemon in the commodious recesses of a dress which, while the height of fashion in those times, nevertheless trailed the grass. 1929, Frank Proctor, Fox Hunting in Canada and Some Men who Made it, page 162:
    • In my mind's eye, I looked down at the toes of high-topped, lace-up leather boots, peeking from under a long brown skirt that bent the grass sideways as it trailed the ground and tented gently outward with every step. 2018, Amy E. Weldon, The Writer's Eye, page 77:
    • 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. 1893 August, Mary Hartwell Catherwood, “The White Islander”, in The Century:
    • The monument would use the floowing indicators to determine when and where visitor allocations need to be made: (1) resource damage (e.g., proliferation of campsites, human waste problems, social trailing or vandalism to historical, archaeological, paleontological sites, or destruction of biological soil crusts), […] 1999, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, page 2-19:
11. To travel by following or creating trails.
    • Trailed three miles down the North side and encamped early, making thirteen miles trailed to-day. 1906, The Quarterly of the Oregon Historical Society, page 352:
    • That control became visible each spring when they trailed back out of the low country to summer range. 1982, David Lavender, Colorado River Country, page 144:
    • In accordance with the treaty of 1842 they crossed the Missouri River to a reservation in Kansas. Poor crops, however, and a feverish climate made them unhappy in their new home: they trailed back to Iowa. 1915, Jacob Van der Zee, Early History of Lead Mining in the Iowa Country, page 8:
    • But we did not see him and now, in the big heat of noon, we made three long circles around some hills and finally came out into a meadow full of little, humpy Masai cattle and, leaving all shade behind, trailed back across the open country under the noon sun to the car. 1935, Ernest Hemmingway, Green Hills of Africa, page 164:
12. To transport (livestock) by herding it along a trail.
    • Genesis, the first book of the Holy Bible, relates the earliest known instance of cattle being trailed to better grass lands (unless Noah's trip with the ark is one). 1956, John O. Bye, Back Trailing in the Heart of the Short-grass Country, page 6:
    • The most impressive long-distance traders, however, were the backcountry drovers, who trailed herds of livestock up the wagon road to Philadelphia (Merrens 1964:135; Bridenbaugh 1971:138). 1989, John Solomon Otto, The Southern Frontiers, 1607-1860, page 53:
    • In all areas where trails are present, stock must remain on the trails. Free trailing or loose herding is not permitted. 2008, Ron Kay, Ron Kay's Guide to Zion National Park, page 78:
    • 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 the use of truck pullmans. 1939, Pacific Stockman - Volumes 5-7:
13. (dated) 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. 1847 October 16, Currer Bell [pseudonym; Charlotte Brontë], Jane Eyre. […], volume (please specify |volume=I to III), London: Smith, Elder, and Co., […], →OCLC:

Forms

Deriveds

untrailed · trail off · trail net · trailer · trailing · trail away · mistrail · trail behind

Translations (71)

fr suivre (follow behind) · gl siguir (follow behind) · de verfolgen (follow behind) · ar جَرَّ (drag behind) · hi पीछा करना (follow behind) · cmn 拖 (drag behind) · mi kitō (drag behind) · gl seguir (follow behind) · it inseguire (follow behind) · ca arrossegar (drag behind) · uk переслідувати (follow behind) · de nacheilen (follow behind) · cs vléci (drag behind) · da følge (follow behind) · gd slaod (drag behind) · pl tropić (follow behind) · cs stopovat (follow behind) · it pedinare (follow behind) · de nachsetzen (follow behind) · bg влача (drag behind) · bg оставям следа (leave (a trail of)) · sh ostaviti trag (leave (a trail of)) · ru идти по следу (follow behind) · hu húz (drag behind) · hu von (drag behind) · de zurücklassen (leave (a trail of)) · cs táhnout (drag behind) · mi aru (follow behind) · hu nyomot hagy (leave (a trail of)) · es arrastrar (drag behind) · de ziehen (drag behind) · sh slediti (follow behind) · fr pister (follow behind) · fi seurata (follow behind) · bg проследявам (follow behind) · cs vláčet (drag behind) · cs nechávat za sebou (leave (a trail of)) · ru тащи́ть (drag behind) · cmn 追踪 (follow behind) · ru тяну́ть (drag behind) · cs sledovat (follow behind) · mi kitō (drag behind) · pt seguir (follow behind) · it strascicare (drag behind) · ru волочи́ть (drag behind) · gl arrastrar (drag behind) · fr traîner (drag behind) · hu vontat (drag behind) · mi tauaru (follow behind) · fi jäljittää (follow behind) · de schleifen (drag behind) · ru высле́живать (follow behind) · it lasciar tracce di (leave (a trail of)) · pt arrastar (drag behind) · fi raahata (drag behind) · de folgen (follow behind) · gl arrousar (drag behind) · de nachstellen (follow behind) · gl ransir (drag behind) · it seguire (follow behind) · it trainare (drag behind) · it trascinare (drag behind) · gl restrexar (drag behind) · cmn 跟踪 (follow behind) · uk тягти (drag behind) · ru вы́следить (follow behind) · es seguir (follow behind) · pl śledzić (follow behind) · de schleppen (drag behind) · fi jättää jälkeensä (leave (a trail of)) · de eine Spur hinter sich lassen (leave (a trail of))