trace

trace¹ [treıs] v [T]

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1¦(find somebody/something)¦

2¦(origins)¦

3¦(history/development)¦

4¦(copy)¦

5¦(with your finger)¦

6 trace a call

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[Date: 1200-1300; : Old French; Origin: tracier, from Vulgar Latin tractiare 'to pull', from Latin trahere]

1.) ¦(FIND SOMEBODY/SOMETHING)¦

to find someone or something that has disappeared by searching for them carefully

▪ She had given up all hope of tracing her missing daughter.

▪ Police are trying to trace a young woman who was seen near the accident.

2.) ¦(ORIGINS)¦

to find the origins of when something began or where it came from

trace sth (back) to sth

▪ They've traced their ancestry to Scotland.

▪ The style of these paintings can be traced back to early medieval influences.

3.) ¦(HISTORY/DEVELOPMENT)¦

to study or describe the history, development, or progress of something

▪ Sondheim's book traces the changing nature of the relationship between men and women.

4.) ¦(COPY)¦

to copy a drawing, map etc by putting a piece of transparent paper over it and then drawing the lines you can see through the paper

5.) ¦(WITH YOUR FINGER)¦

to draw real or imaginary lines on the surface of something, usually with your finger or toe

trace sth on/in/across

▪ Rosie's fingers traced a delicate pattern in the sand.

6.) trace a call

to find out where a telephone call is coming from by using special electronic equipment

▪ His call was traced and half an hour later police arrested him.

>traceable adj

trace ²

trace² n

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1¦(sign of something)¦

2¦(small amount)¦

3¦(telephone)¦

4¦(information recorded)¦

5¦(cart/carriage)¦

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[Sense: 1-4; Date: 1200-1300; : Old French; Origin: tracier; TRACE¹]

[Sense: 5; Date: 1300-1400; : Old French; Origin: trais 'traces', plural of trait 'pull, trace'; TRAIT]

1.) ¦(SIGN OF SOMETHING)¦ [U and C]

a small sign that shows that someone or something was present or existed

▪ There was no trace of anyone having entered the room since then.

▪ Petra's lost all trace of her German accent.

▪ Officers were unable to find any trace of drugs.

disappear/vanish/sink without (a) trace

(=disappear completely, without leaving any sign of what happened)

▪ The plane vanished without a trace.

2.) ¦(SMALL AMOUNT)¦

a very small amount of a quality, emotion, substance etc that is difficult to see or notice

trace of

▪ I saw the faintest trace of a smile cross Sandra's face.

▪ traces of poison

3.) ¦(TELEPHONE)¦ technical

a search to find out where a telephone call came from, using special electronic equipment

▪ The police put a trace on the call.

4.) ¦(INFORMATION RECORDED)¦ technical

the mark or pattern made on a ↑screen or on paper by a machine that is recording an electrical signal

▪ This trace shows the heartbeat.

5.) ¦(CART/CARRIAGE)¦

one of the two pieces of leather, rope etc by which a ↑cart or carriage is fastened to an animal pulling it

→kick over the traces at ↑kick¹ (19)