/ trækt; NAmE / noun
1.
( biology ) a system of connected organs or tissues along which materials or messages pass :
the digestive tract
a nerve tract
2.
an area of land, especially a large one
SYN stretch :
vast tracts of forest
3.
(sometimes disapproving ) a short piece of writing, especially on a religious, moral or political subject, that is intended to influence people's ideas
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WORD ORIGIN
senses 1 to 2 late Middle English (in the sense duration or course of time ): from Latin tractus drawing, draught, from trahere draw, pull.
sense 3 late Middle English (denoting a written work treating a particular topic), apparently an abbreviation of Latin tractatus , from tractare to handle, frequentative of trahere draw. The current sense dates from the early 19th cent.