- a long line or series of marks that is left by somebody/something
- a trail of blood
- tourists who leave a trail of litter everywhere they go
- The hurricane left a trail of destruction behind it.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- scent
- blood
- smoke
- …
- lay
- leave
- make
- …
- go cold
- on somebody’s trail
- a trail of blood
- a trail of devastation
- a trail of smoke
- …
- a track, sign or smell that is left behind and that can be followed, especially in hunting
- The hounds were following the fox's trail.
- on the trail of somebody/something The police are still on the trail of the escaped prisoner.
- Fortunately the trail was still warm (= clear and easy to follow).
- The trail had gone cold.
Extra Examples- Ants follow a scent trail laid down previously.
- The dog had picked up the trail of a rabbit.
- The fox had crossed a stream, and the hounds lost the trail.
- Detectives had found several new clues and were back on the murderer's trail.
- The couple laid a false trail to escape the press photographers.
- They had to find the kidnappers before the trail went cold.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- scent
- blood
- smoke
- …
- lay
- leave
- make
- …
- go cold
- on somebody’s trail
- a trail of blood
- a trail of devastation
- a trail of smoke
- …
- a path through the countryside
- a trail through the forest
Extra ExamplesTopics Hobbiesc1- We set off to walk the trail that winds along the Colorado River.
- The trail was covered with deep snow.
- The Norfolk Coast path is part of a National Trail.
- The Appalachian Trail runs from Maine to Georgia.
- A woodland trail leads off to the right.
- The trail wends its way through leafy woodland and sunny meadows.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- forest
- mountain
- nature
- …
- follow
- hit
- take
- …
- go
- lead
- run
- …
- along a/the trail
- a route that is followed for a particular purpose
- a tourist trail (= of famous buildings)
- politicians on the campaign trail (= travelling around to attract support)
Extra Examples- In 1967 she hit the hippy trail to India.
- We did the Inca trail.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- forest
- mountain
- nature
- …
- follow
- hit
- take
- …
- go
- lead
- run
- …
- along a/the trail
see also audit trail, paper trail
Word OriginMiddle English (as a verb): from Old French traillier ‘to tow’, or Middle Low German treilen ‘haul a boat’, based on Latin tragula ‘dragnet’, from trahere ‘to pull’. Compare with trawl. The noun originally denoted the train of a robe, later generalized to denote something trailing.
Idioms
See trail in the Oxford Advanced American DictionarySee trail in the Oxford Learner's Dictionary of Academic Englishblaze a trail
- to be the first to do or to discover something that others follow
- The department is blazing a trail in the field of laser surgery.
hit the road/trail
- (informal) to start a journey
- The following spring I hit the road.
hot on somebody’s/something’s tracks/trail
- (informal) close to catching or finding the person or thing that you have been running after or searching for
Check pronunciation:
trail