track1 /trak/ noun- A mark or trail left
- A beaten path or road
- A made path
- A sequence or course of thoughts or actions
- The predetermined line of travel of an aircraft
- A line of motion or travel
- A course, usu oval-shaped, on which races are run
- A railway line, the rails and the space between
- The groove cut in a gramophone record by the recording instrument
- One out of several items recorded on a disc or tape
- One of several areas or paths on magnetic recording equipment (eg magnetic tape) receiving information from a single input channel
- A film's soundtrack
- Any of several more or less demanding courses of study designed to meet the respective needs of students divided into groups according to ability (US)
- A plastic or metal rod from which curtains, lights, etc can be suspended
- The endless band on which the wheels of a caterpillar vehicle run (tracked adjective equipped with such metal bands)
- (in a factory, etc) a conveyor carrying goods in process of manufacture
- Track and field events collectively (N American)
- The distance between a pair of wheels measured as the distance between their respective points of contact with the ground
- A path followed by a particle, esp when rendered visible in photographic emulsion by cloud chamber, bubble chamber or spark chamber
- (usu in pl) a red mark on the skin caused by using intravenous drugs (slang)
transitive verb- To follow the track of
- To find by so doing
- To traverse
- To beat, tread (a path, etc)
- To follow the progress of
- To follow the movement of (a satellite, spacecraft, etc) by radar, etc, and record its positions
- (of a stylus or laser beam) to read information from (a vinyl record, CD, etc)
- To follow or move in relation to (a moving object) while filming it
- To leave dirty marks on (a floor) (with on or up; N American)
- To make dirty marks on eg a floor with (snow, mud, etc) (N American)
intransitive verb- To follow a trail
- To make one's way (informal)
- To run in alignment, esp (of gramophone needles) to follow the grooves
- (of a camera or camera operator) to follow or move in relation to a moving object being filmed
- To move a dolly camera in a defined path while taking a shot (tracking shot)
ORIGIN: Fr trac; prob Gmc; cf track2 trackˈable adjective trackˈage noun Provision of railway tracks trackˈer noun - A person or thing that tracks
- An investment fund that aims to follow a stock market index
trackie adjective (informal) (of a garment) originally constituting part of a tracksuit noun (in pl) a tracksuit trackˈing noun - The action of the verb
- Excessive leakage current between two insulated points due eg to moisture (elec eng)
- Disposition of the tone arm on a gramophone so that the stylus remains correctly positioned in the groove
- The addition of prerecorded music to a motion picture instead of using specially-commissioned music
- The division of study courses or students into tracks (qv above) (US)
trackˈless adjective - Without a path
- Untrodden
- Leaving no trace
- Running without rails
trackˈlessly adverb trackˈlessness noun track and field noun Athletic events collectively, incl running and hurdling races (track events), and jumping and throwing competitions (field events) trackˈ-and-fieldˈ adjective trackˈball or trackˈerball noun (computing) A spherical ball that can be rotated with the palm of the hand causing the cursor to move across the screen trackˈbed noun The foundations of a railway track tracker dog noun One used for tracking, esp in police searches track event noun see track and field above. tracking station noun A station with radar and radio equipment allowing it to track spacecraft, aircraft and satellites through the atmosphere or space trackˈlayer noun - A tracklaying vehicle
- A trackman (N American)
trackˈlaying adjective (of a vehicle) having caterpillar tracks trackˈman noun (N American) A platelayer trackˈpad noun same as touchpad (see under touch) track record noun A record of past performance, orig that of an athlete, now generally that of any individual, company, etc track rod noun A rod connecting the front wheels of a vehicle, ensuring alignment and accurate steering track shoe noun A lightweight spiked running shoe worn by athletes trackˈsuit noun A loose warm suit intended to be worn by athletes when warming up or training, but sometimes worn by others in an error of judgement trackˈ-walker noun A person who has charge of a railway track trackˈway noun - A beaten track
- An ancient road
across the tracks or the wrong side of the tracks (informal) A slum or other socially disadvantaged area cover one's tracks To take measures to prevent discovery of one's actions, motives, etc in one's tracks Just where one stands keep (or lose) track of Keep (or fail to keep) oneself informed about make tracks (informal) - To make off
- To go quickly
make tracks for (informal) To go towards off the beaten track - Away from frequented roads
- Out of the usual, not normal or conventional (figurative)
off the track Off course, in the wrong direction on the right (or wrong) track Pursuing a correct (or mistaken) course track down To find after intensive search |