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
Example Sentences
Verb The children traced their hands onto the sidewalk with chalk. You can put a piece of paper over the pattern and trace it. She traced the letters of her name. We will need to trace the electrical wires through the walls. The word “amiable” traces back to the Latin word for “friend.”
Word History
Etymology
Noun (1)
Middle English, from Anglo-French, from tracer to trace
Verb
Middle English, from Anglo-French tracer, from Vulgar Latin *tractiare to drag, from Latin tractus, past participle of trahere to pull
Noun (2)
Middle English trais, from Anglo-French tres, plural of trait pull, draft, trace — more at trait