trace in WordNet English dictionary

1. read with difficulty
   "Can you decipher this letter?"; "The archeologist traced the hieroglyphs"
   decipher  trace 
   
2. make a mark or lines on a surface
   "draw a line"; "trace the outline of a figure in the sand"
   trace  draw  line  describe  delineate 
   
3. follow, discover, or ascertain the course of development of something
   "We must follow closely the economic development is Cuba" ; "trace the student's progress"
   trace  follow 
   
4. pursue or chase relentlessly
   "The hunters traced the deer into the woods"; "the detectives hounded the suspect until they found him"
   hound  hunt  trace 
   
5. to go back over again
   "we retraced the route we took last summer"; "trace your path"
   trace  retrace 
   
6. copy by following the lines of the original drawing on a transparent sheet placed upon it; make a tracing of
   "trace a design"; "trace a pattern"
   trace 
   
7. make one's course or travel along a path; travel or pass over, around, or along
   "The children traced along the edge of the dark forest"; "The women traced the pasture"
   trace 
   
8. discover traces of
   "She traced the circumstances of her birth"
   trace 
   

1. a suggestion of some quality
   "there was a touch of sarcasm in his tone"; "he detected a ghost of a smile on her face"
   touch  trace  ghost 
   
2. a just detectable amount
   "he speaks French with a trace of an accent"
   trace  hint  suggestion 
   
3. an indication that something has been present
   "there wasn't a trace of evidence for the claim"; "a tincture of condescension"
   trace  vestige  tincture  shadow 
   
4. a drawing created by superimposing a semitransparent sheet of paper on the original image and copying on it the lines of the original image
   tracing  trace 
   
5. either of two lines that connect a horse's harness to a wagon or other vehicle or to a whiffletree
   trace 
   
6. a visible mark (as a footprint) left by the passage of person or animal or vehicle
   trace