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WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2024track /træk/USA pronunciation
n.
- Rail Transport[countable] a pair of parallel lines of rails on which a railroad train, trolley, or the like runs.
- evidence that something has passed:[countable]the tracks of my tears.
- Usually, tracks. [plural] marks left by an animal, person, or vehicle:[countable]You can see the tracks where the deer crossed the stream.
- a path made by or as if by the feet of people or animals;
trail:[countable]a track through the woods to the river.
- a line of travel or of motion:[countable]The track of the spy satellite takes it over our airfield in just a few moments.
- Sport
- [countable] a course laid out for running or racing:The school spent millions on a new track.
- [uncountable] the group of sports performed on such a course, as running or hurdling.
- [countable]
- Sound Reproductionone of the parallel recording surfaces extending along the length of a magnetic tape.
- Sound Reproductionband2 (def. 5).
- Sound Reproductionmaterial recorded on a track (def. 7a) that is combined with other parts of a musical recording to produce a final version.
- Computing[countable] one of a number of rings on the surface of a floppy disk along which data are recorded.
- Slang Terms tracks, [plural] needle marks on the skin of a drug user, caused by injections.
- Furniture[countable] a metal strip along which something, as a curtain, can be mounted or moved.
- Education a program of study or the level of courses to which a student is assigned on the basis of skill or need;
an academic course or path:[countable]the college track.
v. [~ + object]
- to follow or pursue the track of:The dogs tracked the fox to its hole.
- to leave footprints on:to track the floor with muddy shoes.
- to make a trail of footprints with (dirt, etc.):to track mud on the floor.
- Aeronauticsto follow the course of (an aircraft, etc.), as by radar, etc.:The gunner tracked the incoming fighter.
- to follow the course of progress of:We have been tracking your progress.
- track down, to pursue until caught or captured;
follow: [~ + object + down]I promised to track Smith down and kill him.[~ + down + object]I promised to track down the traitor and kill him.
Idioms
- Idioms keep track, to remain aware;
keep informed: [no object]There are too many things to do; I can't keep track.[~ + of + object]I can't keep track of all those employees.
- Idioms lose track, to fail to keep informed or aware: [no object]I keep losing track; are we on page 1055 or 1056?[~ + of + object]I lost track of how many disks my computer destroyed.
- Idioms make tracks, [Informal.]to hurry.
- Idioms off the track, departing from the subject under discussion:We're off the track again; we have to come back to the topic.
- Idioms on the track of, in search or pursuit of;
close upon:The FBI is on the track of the gang.
- Idioms the wrong (or right ) side of the tracks, the unfashionable, or lower-status (or fashionable, or higher-status) part of a city:He was a boy from the wrong side of the tracks.
track•a•ble, adj.
track•er, n. [countable]
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2024track
(trak),USA pronunciation n.
- a structure consisting of a pair of parallel lines of rails with their crossties, on which a railroad train, trolley, or the like runs.
- a wheel rut.
- evidence, as a mark or a series of marks, that something has passed.
- Usually, tracks. footprints or other marks left by an animal, person, or vehicle:a lion's tracks; car tracks.
- a path made or beaten by or as if by the feet of people or animals;
trail:to follow the track of a murderer.
- a line of travel or motion:the track of a bird.
- a course or route followed.
- a course of action, conduct, or procedure:on the right track to solve the problem.
- a path or course made or laid out for some particular purpose.
- a series or sequence of events or ideas.
- something associated with making a track, as the wheel span of a vehicle or the tread of a tire.
- a caterpillar tread.
- [Sports.]
- a course laid out for running or racing.
- the group of sports performed on such a course, as running or hurdling, as distinguished from field events.
- both track and field events as a whole.
- [Recording.]
- a band of recorded sound laid along the length of a magnetic tape.
- band2 (def. 6).
- an individual song or segment of a recording:a title track.
- a discrete, separate recording that is combined with other parts of a musical recording to produce the final aural version:a special rhythm track added to the basic track.
- [Auto.]the distance between the centers of the treads of either the front or rear wheels of a vehicle.
- Computinga data-recording path on a storage medium, as a magnetic disk, tape, or drum, that is accessible to a read-write head in a given position as the medium moves past.
- tracks, [Slang.]needle marks on the arm, leg, or body of a drug user caused by habitual injections.
- Cinemasound track.
- a metal strip or rail along which something, as lighting or a curtain, can be mounted or moved.
- Educationa study program or level of curriculum to which a student is assigned on the basis of aptitude or need;
academic course or path.
- in one's tracks, [Informal.]in the spot in which one is or is standing at the moment:He stopped dead in his tracks, listening for the sound to be repeated.
- keep track, to be aware;
keep informed:Have you been keeping track of the time?
- lose track, to fail to keep informed;
neglect to keep a record:He soon lost track of how much money he had spent.
- make tracks, [Informal.]to go or depart in a hurry:to make tracks for the store before closing time.
- off the track, departing from the objective or the subject at hand;
astray:He can't tell a story without getting off the track.
- on the track of, in search or pursuit of;
close upon:They are on the track of a solution to the problem.
- on the wrong or right side of the tracks, from a poor or wealthy part of a community or of society:born on the wrong side of the tracks.
v.t.
- to follow or pursue the track, traces, or footprints of.
- to follow (a track, course, etc.).
- to make one's way through;
traverse.
- to leave footprints on (often fol. by up or on):to track the floor with muddy shoes.
- to make a trail of footprints with (dirt, snow, or the like):The dog tracked mud all over the living room rug.
- to observe or monitor the course or path of (an aircraft, rocket, satellite, star, etc.), as by radar or radio signals.
- to observe or follow the course of progress of;
keep track of.
- to furnish with a track or tracks, as for railroad trains.
- [Railroads.]to have (a certain distance) between wheels, runners, rails, etc.
v.i.
- to follow or pursue a track or trail.
- to run in the same track, as the wheels of a vehicle.
- to be in alignment, as one gearwheel with another.
- to have a specified span between wheels or runners:The car's wheels track about five feet.
- [Motion Pictures, Television.]dolly (def. 12).
- Sound Reproduction[Recording.]to follow the undulations in the grooves of a phonograph record.
- track down, to pursue until caught or captured;
follow:to track down a killer.
- Old Norse trathk trodden spot; compare Norwegian trakke to trample; akin to tread
- Middle French trac, perh.
- late Middle English trak (noun, nominal) 1425–75
- 3.See corresponding entry in Unabridged trace, record, spoor.
- 28.See corresponding entry in Unabridged stalk, hunt.
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
track /træk/ n - the mark or trail left by something that has passed by: the track of an animal
- any road or path affording passage, esp a rough one
- a rail or pair of parallel rails on which a vehicle, such as a locomotive, runs, esp the rails together with the sleepers, ballast, etc, on a railway
- a course of action, thought, etc: don't start on that track again!
- a line of motion or travel, such as flight
- an endless jointed metal band driven by the wheels of a vehicle such as a tank or tractor to enable it to move across rough or muddy ground
- the path of a particle of ionizing radiation as observed in a cloud chamber, bubble chamber, or photographic emulsion
- a course for running or racing
- (as modifier): track events
- US Canadian sports performed on a track
- track and field events as a whole
- a path on a magnetic recording medium, esp magnetic tape, on which information, such as music or speech, from a single input channel is recorded
- any of a number of separate sections in the recording on a record, CD, or cassette
- a metal path that makes the interconnections on an integrated circuit
- the distance between the points of contact with the ground of a pair of wheels, such as the front wheels of a motor vehicle or the paired wheels of an aircraft undercarriage
- a hypothetical trace made on the surface of the earth by a point directly below an aircraft in flight
- keep track of ⇒ to follow the passage, course, or progress of
- lose track of ⇒ to fail to follow the passage, course, or progress of
- off the beaten track ⇒
See beaten - off the track ⇒ away from what is correct or true
- on the track of ⇒ on the scent or trail of; pursuing
- the right track ⇒ the correct line of investigation, inquiry, etc
- the wrong track ⇒ the incorrect line of investigation, inquiry, etc
vb - to follow the trail of (a person, animal, etc)
- to follow the flight path of (a satellite, spacecraft, etc) by picking up radio or radar signals transmitted or reflected by it
- US to provide with a track
- to run on a track of (a certain width)
- (of a camera or camera operator) to follow (a moving object) in any direction while operating
- to move (a camera) towards the scene (track in) or away from the scene (track out)
- to follow a track through (a place): to track the jungles
- (intransitive) (of the pick-up, stylus, etc, of a record player) to follow the groove of a record: the pick-up tracks badly
See also tracksEtymology: 15th Century: from Old French trac, probably of Germanic origin; related to Middle Dutch tracken to pull, Middle Low German trecken; compare Norwegian trakke to trampleˈtrackable adj ˈtracker n
'track' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):
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