I. trail 1 /treɪl/ BrE AmE verb
[ Date: 1300-1400 ; Language: Old French ; Origin: trailler 'to pull after you, tow' , from Vulgar Latin tragulare , from Latin tragula 'sledge, net for pulling' ]
1 . PULL [intransitive and transitive] to pull something behind you, especially along the ground, or to be pulled in this way:
A plane trailing a banner was circling overhead.
trail in/on/over etc
She walked slowly along the path, her skirt trailing in the mud.
trail something in/across/through etc something
Rees was leaning out of the boat trailing his hand through the water.
2 . WALK SLOWLY [intransitive always + adverb/preposition] to walk slowly, especially behind other people because you are tired or bored
trail behind/around
Susie trailed along behind her parents.
We spent the afternoon trailing around the shops.
3 . LOSE A COMPETITION [intransitive, transitive usually in progressive] to be losing in a game, competition, or election:
The Democratic candidate is still trailing in the opinion polls.
trail (somebody) by something
Manchester United were trailing by two goals to one.
trail in/home (=finish in a bad position)
He trailed in last after a disastrous race.
4 . FOLLOW SOMEBODY [transitive] to follow someone by looking for signs that they have gone in a particular direction:
Police trailed the gang for several days.
trail away/off phrasal verb
if someone’s voice trails away or trails off, it becomes gradually quieter and then stops:
She trailed off, silenced by the look Kris gave her.
II. trail 2 BrE AmE noun [countable]
1 . a rough path across countryside or through a forest:
The trail led over Boulder Pass before descending to a lake.
⇨ ↑ nature trail
2 . a long line or a series of marks that have been left by someone or something
trail of
a trail of wet footprints
The bus left a trail of black smoke behind it.
The typhoon left a trail of devastation.
3 . a series of unpleasant situations or feelings that have been left by someone or something
trail of
He left a trail of broken hearts and broken promises.
4 . a sign that a person or animal has been in a place, used for finding or catching them:
The hunters lost the tiger’s trail in the middle of the jungle.
Police tracked him to Valencia and there the trail went cold (=they could not find any signs of him) .
5 . be on the trail of somebody/something to be trying to find someone or something by getting information about them:
industrial spies on the trail of technological secrets
Police believe they are hot on the trail of a drug-smuggling gang (=they are close to finding them) .
6 . all the places that a particular group of people visit for a particular purpose:
a town on the tourist trail
campaign/election trail
politicians on the campaign trail
7 . the set of things that someone does to achieve something:
New players should put the team back on the winning trail.
⇨ blaze a trail at ↑ blaze 2 (5), ⇨ hit the trail/road at ↑ hit 1 (17)