trace1

 
Pronunciation: /treɪs/

verb

[with object]
  • 1find or discover by investigation: police are trying to trace a white van seen in the area
  • find or describe the origin or development of: Bob’s book traces his flying career with the RAF
  • 2follow or mark the course or position of (something) with one’s eye, mind, or finger: through the binoculars, I traced the path I had taken the night before
  • take (a particular path or route): a tear traced a lonely path down her cheek
  • 3copy (a drawing, map, or design) by drawing over its lines on a superimposed piece of transparent paper: trace a map of the world on to a large piece of paper
  • draw (a pattern or line), especially with one’s finger or toe: she traced a pattern in the dirt with the toe of her shoe
  • 4give an outline of: the article traces out some of the connections between education, qualifications, and the labour market

noun

  • 1a mark, object, or other indication of the existence or passing of something: remove all traces of the old adhesive [mass noun]: the aircraft disappeared without trace
  • a line or pattern displayed by an instrument to show the existence or nature of something which is being recorded or measured.
  • a physical change in the brain presumed to be caused by a process of learning or memory.
  • 2a very small quantity, especially one too small to be accurately measured: his body contained traces of amphetamines [as modifier]: trace quantities of PCBs
  • a barely discernible indication of something: just a trace of a smile
  • 3a procedure to investigate the source of something, such as the place from which a telephone call was made: we’ve got a trace on the call
  • 4North American & West Indian a path or track.
  • 5a line which represents the projection of a curve or surface on a plane or the intersection of a curve or surface with a plane.
  • 6 Mathematics the sum of the elements in the principal diagonal of a square matrix.

Derivatives

traceability

Pronunciation: /-ˈbɪlɪti/
noun

traceable

adjective

traceless

adjective

Origin:

Middle English (first recorded as a noun in the sense 'path that someone or something takes'): from Old French trace (noun), tracier (verb), based on Latin tractus (see tract1)