track

track¹ W2S2 [træk] n

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1¦(path/road)¦

2¦(marks on ground)¦

3¦(for racing)¦

4¦(train)¦

5 be on the right/wrong track

6 keep/lose track of somebody/something

7¦(music/song)¦

8 stop/halt (dead) in your tracks

9 cover your tracks

10¦(sport)¦

11 be on track

12 get off the track

13 be on the track of somebody/something

14 make tracks

15¦(direction)¦

16¦(on a vehicle)¦

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[Date: 1400-1500; : Old French; Origin: trac]

1.) ¦(PATH/ROAD)¦

a narrow path or road with a rough uneven surface, especially one made by people or animals frequently moving through the same place

▪ The road leading to the farm was little more than a dirt track .

▪ The track led through dense forest.

▪ a steep mountain track

2.) ¦(MARKS ON GROUND)¦

tracks [plural]

a line of marks left on the ground by a moving person, animal, or vehicle

▪ We followed the tyre tracks across a muddy field.

▪ The tracks, which looked like a fox's, led into the woods.

3.) ¦(FOR RACING)¦

a circular course around which runners, cars etc race, which often has a specially prepared surface

▪ To run a mile, you have to run four circuits of the track.

→↑dirt track

↑sleeper

4.) ¦(TRAIN)¦

a) the two metal lines along which trains travel

= ↑railway line

▪ The track was damaged in several places.

b) American English the particular track that a train leaves from or arrives at

▪ The train for Boston is leaving from track 2.

5.) be on the right/wrong track

to think in a way that is likely to lead to a correct or incorrect result

▪ We've had the initial test results and it looks as though we're on the right track.

6.) keep/lose track of sb/sth

to pay attention to someone or something, so that you know where they are or what is happening to them, or to fail to do this

▪ It's difficult to keep track of all the new discoveries in genetics.

▪ I just lost all track of time .

7.) ¦(MUSIC/SONG)¦

one of the songs or pieces of music on a record, ↑cassette, or ↑CD

▪ There's a great Miles Davis track on side two.

8.) stop/halt (dead) in your tracks

to suddenly stop, especially because something has frightened or surprised you

9.) cover your tracks

to be careful not to leave any signs that could let people know where you have been or what you have done because you want to keep it a secret, usually because it is illegal

▪ He tried to cover his tracks by burning all the documents.

10.)¦(SPORT)¦[U]

AmE

a) sport that involves running on a track

▪ The next year he didn't run track or play football.

b) all the sports in an ↑athletics competition such as running, jumping, or throwing the ↑javelin

▪ a famous track star

▪ She went out for track in the spring (=she joined the school's track team) .

11.) be on track

spoken to be likely to achieve the result you want

▪ We're still on track for 10% growth.

12.) get off the track

spoken to begin to deal with a new subject rather than the main one which was being discussed

▪ Don't get off the track, we're looking at this year's figures not last year's.

13.) be on the track of sb/sth

to hunt or search for someone or something

▪ Police are on the track of the bank robbers.

14.) make tracks

spoken used to say you must leave a place

▪ It's time we started making tracks.

15.) ¦(DIRECTION)¦

the direction or line taken by something as it moves

track of

▪ islands that lie in the track of North Atlantic storms

16.) ¦(ON A VEHICLE)¦

a continuous metal band that goes over the wheels of a vehicle such as a ↑bulldozer, allowing it to move over uneven ground

→off the beaten track at ↑beaten, ↑one-track mind

→be from the wrong side of the tracks at ↑wrong¹ (17)

track ²

track² v

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1¦(search)¦

2¦(development)¦

3¦(aircraft/ship)¦

4¦(camera)¦

5¦(school)¦

6¦(mark)¦

Phrasal verbs

　track somebody/something<=>down

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1.) ¦(SEARCH)¦ [T]

to search for a person or animal by following the marks they leave behind them on the ground, their smell etc

▪ Police have been tracking the four criminals all over Central America.

track sb to sth

▪ The dogs tracked the wolf to its lair.

2.) ¦(DEVELOPMENT)¦ [T]

to record or study the behaviour or development of someone or something over time

▪ The progress of each student is tracked by computer.

3.) ¦(AIRCRAFT/SHIP)¦ [T]

to follow the movements of an aircraft or ship by using ↑radar

▪ a tracking station

4.) ¦(CAMERA)¦ [I + in/out]

to move a film or television camera away from or towards a scene in order to follow the action that you are recording

5.) ¦(SCHOOL)¦ [T]

AmE to put schoolchildren in groups according to their ability

British Equivalent: stream

6.) ¦(MARK)¦ [T]

AmE to leave behind a track of something such as mud or dirt when you walk

▪ Which of you boys tracked mud all over the kitchen floor?

track down [track sb/sth<=>down] phr v

to find someone or something that is difficult to find by searching or looking for information in several different places

▪ I finally managed to track down the book you wanted in a shop near the station.

▪ Detectives had tracked her down in California.