trace

• POS: Noun, Verb (transitive)
• COUNT in NET: 3 in 3 verses (in OT : 3 in 3 verses)

CIDE DICTIONARY

trace, n. [F. trais. pl. of trait. See Trait.].

•  One of two straps, chains, or ropes of a harness, extending from the collar or breastplate to a whiffletree attached to a vehicle or thing to be drawn; a tug.  [1913 Webster]
•  A connecting bar or rod, pivoted at each end to the end of another piece, for transmitting motion, esp. from one plane to another; specif., such a piece in an organ-stop action to transmit motion from the trundle to the lever actuating the stop slider.  [Webster 1913 Suppl.]

trace, n. [F. trace. See Trace, v. t. ].

•  A mark left by anything passing; a track; a path; a course; a footprint; a vestige; as, the trace of a carriage or sled; the trace of a deer; a sinuous trace.  Milton.  [1913 Webster]
•  A very small quantity of an element or compound in a given substance, especially when so small that the amount is not quantitatively determined in an analysis; -- hence, in stating an analysis, often contracted to tr.  [1913 Webster]
•  A mark, impression, or visible appearance of anything left when the thing itself no longer exists; remains; token; vestige.  [1913 Webster]

  "The shady empire shall retain no trace
  Of war or blood, but in the sylvan chase."  [1913 Webster]
•  The intersection of a plane of projection, or an original plane, with a coordinate plane.  [1913 Webster]
•  The ground plan of a work or works.  [1913 Webster]

Syn.-Vestige; mark; token. See Vestige.

trace, v. t. [OF. tracier, F. tracer, from (assumed) LL. tractiare, fr.L. tractus, p. p. of trahere to draw. Cf. Abstract, Attract, Contract, Portratt, Tract, Trail, Train, Treat. ].

•  To mark out; to draw or delineate with marks; especially, to copy, as a drawing or engraving, by following the lines and marking them on a sheet superimposed, through which they appear; as, to trace a figure or an outline; a traced drawing.  [1913 Webster]

  "Some faintly traced features or outline of the mother and the child, slowly lading into the twilight of the woods."  [1913 Webster]
•  To follow by some mark that has been left by a person or thing which has preceded; to follow by footsteps, tracks, or tokens.  Cowper.  [1913 Webster]

  "You may trace the deluge quite round the globe."  [1913 Webster]

  "I feel thy power . . . to trace the ways
  Of highest agents."  [1913 Webster]
•  Hence, to follow the trace or track of.  [1913 Webster]

  "How all the way the prince on footpace traced."  [1913 Webster]
•  To copy; to imitate.  [1913 Webster]

  "That servile path thou nobly dost decline,
  Of tracing word, and line by line."  [1913 Webster]
•  To walk over; to pass through; to traverse.  [1913 Webster]

  "We do tracethis alley up and down."  [1913 Webster]

trace, v. i. 

 To walk; to go; to travel.  [1913 Webster]
"Not wont on foot with heavy arms to trace."  [1913 Webster]

OXFORD DICTIONARY

trace, v. & n.
--v.tr.
1 a observe, discover, or find vestiges or signs of by investigation. b (often foll. by along, through, to, etc.) follow or mark the track or position of (traced their footprints in the mud; traced the outlines of a wall). c (often foll. by back) follow to its origins (can trace my family to the 12th century; the report has been traced back to you).
2 (often foll. by over) copy (a drawing etc.) by drawing over its lines on a superimposed piece of translucent paper, or by using carbon paper.
3 (often foll. by out) mark out, delineate, sketch, or write esp. laboriously (traced out a plan of the district; traced out his vision of the future).
4 pursue one's way along (a path etc.).
--n.
1 a a sign or mark or other indication of something having existed; a vestige (no trace remains of the castle; has the traces of a vanished beauty). b a very small quantity. c an amount of rainfall etc. too small to be measured.
2 a track or footprint left by a person or animal.
3 a track left by the moving pen of an instrument etc.
4 a line on the screen of a cathode-ray tube showing the path of a moving spot.
5 a curve's projection on or intersection with a plane etc.
6 a change in the brain caused by learning processes.

Idiom

trace element
1 a chemical element occurring in minute amounts.
2 a chemical element required only in minute amounts by living organisms for normal growth. trace fossil a fossil that represents a burrow, footprint, etc., of an organism.

Derivative

traceable adj. traceability n. traceless adj.

trace, n. each of the two side-straps, chains, or ropes by which a horse draws a vehicle.

Idiom

kick over the traces become insubordinate or reckless. trace-horse a horse that draws in traces or by a single trace, esp. one hitched on to help uphill etc.

Etymology

ME f. OF trais, pl. of TRAIT

THESAURUS

trace

CRT spot, DM display, Doppler signal, IF signal, IM display, Photostat, RF echoes, Xerox, account, afterglow, afterimage, annals, aroma, ascertain, balance, beam, beat signal, bit, blaze, blaze a trail, blemish, blips, block in, block out, blotch, bounces, brand, breath, brief, butt, butt end, candle ends, cartoon, cast, catalog, catch a likeness, catchword, chaff, chalk, chalk out, chalk up, character, characterize, charcoal, chart, check, check off, chronicle, cicatrize, clone, clue, color, companion, condensation trail, contrail, copy, copy out, correspondence, course, crayon, crosshatch, cue, cue word, dapple, dash, dash off, daub, dead ringer, debris, define, definite odor, delimit, delineate, demarcate, depict, design, detect, detectable odor, determine, detritus, diagram, discolor, discover, display, ditto, documentation, dog, doodle, dot, double, double-dot display, draft, draw, draw up, drop, dupe, duplicate, echo, echo signal, edit, effigy, effluvium, emanation, end, enface, engrave, engross, essence, evidence, exact likeness, exhalation, facsimile, fag end, fellow, filings, find, find out, flavor, fleck, follow, follow a clue, follow up, footprints, fossil, fragrance, freckle, fume, gash, get, gleam, hatch, hectograph, hint, history, hit, hit off, holdover, hot lead, hunt down, hunt up, husks, icon, idea, idol, image, impress, imprint, indication, infusion, inkling, inscribe, intimation, invent, inventory, investigate, iota, jot, key, key word, lead, leavings, leftovers, letters, lick, likeness, limn, line, list, living image, living picture, local oscillator signal, locate, look, make a mark, make a recension, make out, manifold, map, mark, mark off, mark out, match, mate, memento, memorial, microcopy, microfilm, mimeo, mimeograph, miniature, mirroring, model, mottle, multigraph, nick, nose, nose out, notate, notch, odds and ends, odor, offscourings, orts, outline, output signal, paint, paint a picture, parings, path, pen, pencil, pepper, photograph, picture, picturize, pipe roll, pips, piste, point, portrait, portray, prick, print, prints, proof, punch, punctuate, puncture, pursue, push the pen, put in writing, quadruplicate, radar signal, rags, reading, recense, record, recording, rediscover, redolence, reduplicate, reflection, refuse, register, registry, relic, relics, remainder, remains, remnant, render, replicate, represent, reproduce, resemblance, residue, residuum, rest, return, return signal, revise, rewrite, riddle, roach, roll, rolls, roster, rota, rough in, rough out, rub, rubbing, rubbish, ruins, rump, run down, run to earth, sauce, savor, sawdust, scar, scarify, scent, schematize, scintilla, score, scotch, scourings, scraps, scratch, scrive, scroll, scumble, seal, seam, search for, seasoning, seek, semblance, shade, shadow, shavings, sign, signal, signal display, signs, similitude, simulacrum, sip, sketch, smack, smattering, smell, smell out, sniff out, soupcon, spark, speck, speckle, spice, spill ink, spit and image, spitting image, splotch, spoil paper, spoor, spot, sprinkling, stain, stalk, stamp, stat, stench, stencil, stigmatize, strain, straw, streak, striate, strike, stripe, stubble, stump, subtle odor, suggestion, sup, superscribe, survival, suspicion, sweepings, symbolize, table, tail, taint, take a rubbing, target image, taste, tattoo, telltale, tempering, thought, tick, tick off, tinct, tincture, tinge, tint, tip-off, token, touch, trace down, trace out, trace over, traces, tracing, track, track down, tracks, trail, transcribe, transmitter signal, tread, trifle, triplicate, twin, type, underline, underscore, unearth, vapor trail, very image, very picture, vestige, video signal, wake, waste, whiff, write, write down, write out

ROGET THESAURUS

trace

Smallness

N smallness, littleness, tenuity, paucity, fewness, meanness, insignificance (unimportance), mediocrity, moderation, small quantity, modicum, trace, hint, minimum, vanishing point, material point, atom, particle, molecule, corpuscle, point, speck, dot, mote, jot, iota, ace, minutiae, details, look, thought, idea, soupcon, dab, dight, whit, tittle, shade, shadow, spark, scintilla, gleam, touch, cast, grain, scruple, granule, globule, minim, sup, sip, sop, spice, drop, droplet, sprinkling, dash, morceau, screed, smack, tinge, tincture, inch, patch, scantling, tatter, cantlet, flitter, gobbet, mite, bit, morsel, crumb, seed, fritter, shive, snip, snippet, snick, snack, snatch, slip, scrag, chip, chipping, shiver, sliver, driblet, clipping, paring, shaving, hair, nutshell, thimbleful, spoonful, handful, capful, mouthful, fragment, fraction, drop in the ocean, animalcule, trifle, mere nothing, next to nothing, hardly anything, just enough to swear by, the shadow of a shade, finiteness, finite quantity, small, little, diminutive, minute, fine, inconsiderable, paltry, faint, slender, light, slight, scanty, scant, limited, meager, sparing, few, low, so-so, middling, tolerable, no great shakes, below par, under par, below the mark, at a low ebb, halfway, moderate, modest, tender, subtle, inappreciable, evanescent, infinitesimal, homeopathic, very small, atomic, corpuscular, microscopic, molecular, subatomic, mere, simple, sheer, stark, bare, near run, dull, petty, shallow, stolid, ungifted, unintelligent, to a small extent, on a small scale, a little bit, a wee bit, slightly, imperceptibly, miserably, wretchedly, insufficiently, imperfectly, faintly, passably, pretty well, well enough, partially, in part, in a certain degree, to a certain degree, to a certain extent, comparatively, some, rather in some degree, in some measure, something, somewhat, simply, only, purely, merely, at least, at the least, at most, at the most, ever so little, as little as may be, tant soit peu, in ever so small a degree, thus far, pro tanto, within bounds, in a manner, after a fashion, so to speak, almost, nearly, well-nigh, short of, not quite, all but, near upon, close upon, peu s'en faut, near the mark, within an ace of, within an inch of, on the brink of, scarcely, hardly, barely, only just, no more than, about, thereabouts, somewhere about, nearly, say, be the same, be little more or less, no ways, no way, no wise, not at all, not in the least, not a bit, not a bit of it, not a whit, not a jot, not a shadow, in no wise, in no respect, by no means, by no manner of means, on no account, at no hand, dare pondus idonea fumo, magno conatu magnas nugas, small sands the mountain, moments make the year.

Inquiry

VB make inquiry, inquire, ask, seek, search, look for, look about for, look out for, scan, reconnoiter, explore, sound, rummage, ransack, pry, peer, look round, look over, go over, look through, go through, spy, overhaul, ask about, inquire about, scratch the head, slap the forehead, look into every hole and corner, peer into every hole and corner, pry into every hole and corner, nose, trace up, search out, hunt down, hunt out, fish out, ferret out, unearth, leave no stone unturned, seek a clue, seek a clew, hunt, track, trail, mouse, dodge, trace, follow the trail, follow the scent, pursue, beat up one's quarters, fish for, feel for, investigate, take up an inquiry, institute an inquiry, pursue an inquiry, follow up an inquiry, conduct an inquiry, carry on an inquiry, carry out an inquiry, prosecute an inquiry, look at, look into, preexamine, discuss, canvass, agitate, examine, study, consider, calculate, dip into, dive into, delve into, go deep into, make sure of, probe, sound, fathom, probe to the bottom, probe to the quick, scrutinize, analyze, anatomize, dissect, parse, resolve, sift, winnow, view in all its phases, try in all its phases, thresh out, bring in question, bring into question, subject to examination, put to the proof, audit, tax, pass in review, take into consideration, take counsel, question, demand, put the question, pop the question, propose the question, propound the question, moot the question, start the question, raise the question, stir the question, suggest the question, put forth the question, ventilate the question, grapple with the question, go into a question, question, put to the question, interrogate, pump, subject to interrogation, subject to examination, cross-question, cross-examine, press for an answer, give the third degree, put to the inquisition, dodge, catechize, require an answer, pick the brains of, suck the brains of, feel the pulse, get the lay of the land, see how the wind is blowing, put one's ear to the ground, be in question, undergo examination.

Discovery

VB discover, find, determine, evolve, learn, fix upon, pick up, find out, trace out, make out, hunt out, fish out, worm out, ferret out, root out, fathom, bring out, draw out, educe, elicit, bring to light, dig out, grub up, fish up, unearth, disinter, solve, resolve, elucidate, unriddle, unravel, unlock, crack, crack open, pick up, open the lock, find a clue, find clew a to, find the key to the riddle, interpret, disclose, trace, get at, hit it, have it, lay one's finger, lay one's hands upon, spot, get at the truth, arrive at the truth, put the saddle on the right horse, hit the right nail on the head, be near the truth, be warm, get warmer, burn, smoke, scent, sniff, catch a whiff of, smell a rat, open the eyes to, see through, see daylight, see in its true colors, see the cloven foot, detect, catch, catch tripping, pitch upon, fall upon, light upon, hit upon, stumble upon, pop upon, come across, come onto, meet with, meet up with, fall in with, recognize, realize, verify, make certain of, identify, Int, eureka!, aha!, I've got it!.

Indication

N indication, symbolism, symbolization, semiology, semiotics, semeiology, semeiotics, Zeitgeist, characteristic, diagnostic, lineament, feature, trait, fingerprint, voiceprint, footprint, noseprint, cloven hoof, footfall, recognition (memory), diagnostic, divining rod, detector, sign, symbol, index, indice, indicator, point, pointer, exponent, note, token, symptom, dollar sign, dollar mark, type, figure, emblem, cipher, device, representation, epigraph, motto, posy, gesture, gesticulation, pantomime, wink, glance, leer, nod, shrug, beck, touch, nudge, dactylology, dactylonomy, freemasonry, telegraphy, chirology, byplay, dumb show, cue, hint, clue, clew, key, scent, signal, signal post, rocket, blue light, watch fire, watch tower, telegraph, semaphore, flagstaff, cresset, fiery cross, calumet, heliograph, guidon, headlight, mark, scratch, line, stroke, dash, score, stripe, streak, tick, dot, point, notch, nick, print, imprint, impress, impression, keyboard symbols, printing symbols, red letter, italics, sublineation, underlining, bold font, jotting, note, annotation, reference, blaze, cedilla, guillemets, hachure, quotation marks, ", double quotes, " ", parentheses, "( )", brackets, "", braces, "", left arrow, "<", right arrow, ">", forward slash, "/", backward slash, "\", exclamation point, "!", commercial at, "@", pound sign, "#", percent sign, "%", carat, "", ampersand, "&", asterisk, "*", hyphen, "-", dash, "-", "_", em dash, "--", plus sign, "+", equals sign, "=", question mark, "?", period, ", ", semicolon, ", ", colon, ":", comma, ", ", apostrophe, "'", single quote, "'", tilde, "~", badge, criterion, countercheck, countermark, countersign, counterfoil, duplicate, tally, label, ticket, billet, letter, counter, check, chip, chop, dib, totem, tessera, card, bill, witness, voucher, stamp, cacher, trade mark, Hall mark, signature, mark, autograph, autography, attestation, hand, hand writing, sign manual, cipher, seal, sigil, signet, hand and seal, paraph, brand, superscription, indorsement, endorsement, password, watchword, catchword, security card, pass, passkey, credentials, open sesame, timbrology, mot de passe, mot du guet, pass-parole, shibboleth, title, heading, docket, address card, visiting card, carte de visite, insignia, banner, banneret, bannerol, bandrol, flag, colors, streamer, standard, eagle, labarum, oriflamb, oriflamme, figurehead, ensign, pennon, pennant, pendant, burgee, blue Peter, jack, ancient, gonfalon, union jack, banderole, old glory, quarantine flag, vexillum, yellow-flag, yellow jack, tricolor, stars and stripes, bunting, heraldry, crest, coat of arms, arms, armorial bearings, hatchment, escutcheon, scutcheon, shield, supporters, livery, uniform, cockade, epaulet, chevron, garland, love knot, favor, beacon, cairn, post, staff, flagstaff, hand, pointer, vane, cock, weathercock, guidepost, handpost, fingerpost, directing post, signpost, pillars of Hercules, pharos, bale-fire, beacon-fire, l'etoile du Nord, landmark, seamark, lighthouse, balize, polestar, loadstar, lodestar, cynosure, guide, address, direction, name, sign, signboard, warning, omen, prefigurement, trace, record, warning &c, alarm, scepter, trophy, gauge, milestone, milepost, brand, fool's cap, check, telltale, test, mileage ticket, milliary, notification, advertisement, word of command, call, bugle call, trumpet call, bell, alarum, cry, battle cry, rallying cry, angelus, reveille, sacring bell, sanctus bell, exposition &c (explanation), proof, pattern, indicating, indicative, indicatory, denotative, connotative, diacritical, representative, typical, symbolic, pantomimic, pathognomonic, symptomatic, characteristic, demonstrative, diagnostic, exponential, emblematic, armorial, individual, known by, recognizable by, indicated, pointed, marked, denotable, indelible, in token of, symbolically, in dumb show, ecce signum, ex ungue leonem, ex pede Herculem, vide ut supra, vultus ariete fortior.

VB indicate, be the sign, of, denote, betoken, argue, testify, bear the impress, of, connote, connotate, represent, stand for, typify, symbolize, put an indication, put a mark, note, mark, stamp, earmark, blaze, label, ticket, docket, dot, spot, score, dash, trace, chalk, print, imprint, impress, engrave, stereotype, make a sign, signalize, underscore, give a signal, hang out a signal, beckon, nod, wink, glance, leer, nudge, shrug, tip the wink, gesticulate, raise the finger, hold up the finger, raise the hand, hold up the hand, saw the air, suit the action to the word, wave a banner, unfurl a banner, hoist a banner, hang out a banner, wave the hand, wave a kerchief, give the cue, show one's colors, give an alarm, sound an alarm, beat the drum, sound the trumpets, raise a cry, sign, seal, attest, underline, call attention to, give notice.

Record

N record, trace, vestige, relic, remains, scar, cicatrix, footstep, footmark, footprint, pug, track mark, wake, trail, scent, piste, monument, hatchment, slab, tablet, trophy, achievement, obelisk, pillar, column, monolith, memorial, memento, testimonial, medal, commemoration, record, note, minute, register, registry, roll, cartulary, diptych, Domesday book, catalogue raisonne, entry, memorandum, indorsement, inscription, copy, duplicate, docket, notch, muniment, deed, document, deposition, proces verbal, affidavit, certificate, notebook, memorandum book, memo book, pocketbook, commonplace book, portfolio, pigeonholes, excerpta, adversaria, jottings, dottings, gazette, gazetteer, newspaper, daily, magazine, almanac, almanack, calendar, ephemeris, diary, log, journal, daybook, ledger, cashbook, petty cashbook, professional journal, scientific literature, the literature, primary literature, secondary literature, article, review article, archive, scroll, state paper, return, blue book, statistics, compte rendu, Acts of, Transactions of, Proceedings of, Hansard's Debates, chronicle, annals, legend, history, biography, Congressional Records, registration, registry, enrollment, inrollment, tabulation, entry, booking, signature, recorder, journalism, recording, tape recording, videotape, compact disk, floppy disk, diskette, hard disk, Winchester disk, read-only memory, ROM, write once read mostly memory, WORM, on record, exegi monumentum aere perennium, read their history in a nation's eyes, records that defy the tooth of time.

Representation

VB copy, drawing, sketch, drought, draft, plot, chart, figure, scheme, image, likeness, icon, portrait, striking likeness, speaking likeness, very image, effigy, facsimile, figure, figure head, puppet, doll, figurine, aglet, manikin, lay- figure, model, mammet, marionette, fantoccini, waxwork, bust, statue, statuette, ideograph, hieroglyphic, anaglyph, kanji, diagram, monogram, map, plan, chart, ground plan, projection, elevation (plan), ichnography, cartography, atlas, outline, scheme, view, radiograph, scotograph, sciagraph, spectrogram, heliogram, V, represent, delineate, depict, depicture, portray, take a likeness, catch a likeness, hit off, photograph, daguerreotype, snapshot, figure, shadow forth, shadow out, adumbrate, body forth, describe, trace, copy, mold, dress up, illustrate, symbolize, paint, carve, engrave, personate, personify, impersonate, assume a character, pose as, act, play, mimic, hold the mirror up to nature.