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noun \ˈtrak\

Simple Definition of track

  • : a mark left on the ground by a moving animal, person, or vehicle

  • : a path or trail that is made by people or animals walking through a field, forest, etc.

  • : a pair of metal bars that a train, trolley, or subway car rides along

Source: Merriam-Webster's Learner's Dictionary

Full Definition of track

  1. 1a :  detectable evidence (as the wake of a ship, a line of footprints, or a wheel rut) that something has passedb :  a path made by or as if by repeated footfalls :  trailc :  a course laid out especially for racingd :  the parallel rails of a railroade (1) :  one of a series of parallel or concentric paths along which material (as music or information) is recorded (as on a phonograph record or magnetic tape) (2) :  a group of grooves on a phonograph record containing recorded sound (3) :  material recorded especially on or as if on a track <a laugh track> <instrumental tracks> <a bonus commentary track on a DVD>f :  a usually metal way (as a groove) serving as a guide (as for a movable lighting fixture)

  2. 2 :  a footprint whether recent or fossil <the huge track of a dinosaur>

  3. 3a :  the course along which something moves or progressesb :  a way of life, conduct, or actionc :  one of several curricula of study to which students are assigned according to their needs or levels of abilityd :  the projection on the earth's surface of the path along which something (as a missile or an airplane) has flown

  4. 4a :  a sequence of events :  a train of ideas :  successionb :  an awareness of a fact, progression, or condition <keep track of the costs> <lose track of the time>

  5. 5a :  the width of a wheeled vehicle from wheel to wheel and usually from the outside of the rimsb :  the tread of an automobile tirec :  either of two endless belts on which a tracklaying vehicle travels

  6. 6 :  track-and-field sports; especially :  those performed on a running track

trackless play \ˈtrak-ləs\ adjective
in one's tracks
  1. :  where one stands or is at the moment :  on the spot <was stopped in his tracks>

on track
  1. :  achieving or doing what is necessary or expected

Examples of track in a sentence

  1. Follow the track into the forest.

  2. The train to Chicago will leave track 3.

Origin of track

Middle English trak, from Middle French trac

First Known Use: 15th century

Synonym Discussion of track

trace, vestige, track mean a perceptible sign made by something that has passed. trace may suggest any line, mark, or discernible effect <the killer left no traces>. vestige applies to a tangible reminder such as a fragment or remnant of what is past and gone <boulders that are vestiges of the last ice age>. track implies a continuous line that can be followed <the fossilized tracks of dinosaurs>.




Simple Definition of track

  • : to follow and try to find (an animal) by looking for its tracks and other signs that show where it has gone

  • : to follow and find (someone or something) especially by looking at evidence

  • : to follow or watch the path of (something)

Source: Merriam-Webster's Learner's Dictionary

Full Definition of track

  • transitive verb
    1. 1a :  to follow the tracks or traces of :  trailb :  to search for by following evidence until found <track down the source>

    2. 2a :  to follow by vestiges :  traceb :  to observe or plot the moving path of (as a spacecraft or missile) often instrumentally

    3. 3 :  to travel over :  traverse <track a desert>

    4. 4a :  to make tracks uponb :  to carry (as mud) on the feet and deposit

    5. 5 :  to keep track of (as a trend) :  follow

    6. intransitive verb
    7. 1 :  travel <a comet tracking eastward>

    8. 2a of a phonograph needle :  to follow the groove undulations of a recordingb of a pair of wheels (1) :  to maintain a constant distance apart on the straightaway (2) :  to fit a track or railsc of a rear wheel of a vehicle :  to follow accurately the corresponding fore wheel on a straightaway

    9. 3 :  to leave tracks (as on a floor)

    tracker noun

    Examples of track in a sentence

    1. He tracked the deer for a mile.

    2. The detectives tracked the killer to Arizona.

    3. The ship can track incoming missiles with radar.

    4. Meteorologists are tracking the storm.

    5. The study tracked the patients over the course of five years.

    6. The squadron will track north by northeast for 40 miles.


    First Known Use of track


    TRACK Defined for Kids



    noun \ˈtrak\

    Definition of track for Students

    1. 1 :  a mark left by something that has gone by <rabbit tracks>

    2. 2 :  path 1, trail

    3. 3 :  the rails of a railroad

    4. 4 :  a course laid out for racing

    5. 5 :  awareness of things or of the order in which things happen or ideas come <I've lost track of the time.> <Keep track of your expenses.>

    6. 6 :  either of two endless metal belts on which a vehicle (as a tank) travels

    7. 7 :  track-and-field sports




    Definition of track for Students


    1. 1 :  to follow the marks or traces of :  to search for someone or something

    2. 2 :  to bring indoors on the bottom of the shoes, feet, or paws <Don't track mud into the house.>

    Seen and Heard

    What made you want to look up track? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).


    the range of perception or understanding

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