What the difference between"trail"and"track"

[Yuan0516]

These two words all have the meaning of " follwing behind sb." But I can not figure out the difference.

 

[emsr2d2]

Welcome to the forum. :hi:

Before we continue, please edit your Member Profile. Somehow, the word "Yes" has appeared in your Current Location box. Please choose the relevant country from the list provided.

 

[Charlie Bernstein]

These two words both mean "[no space]following behind somebody." But I can not figure out the difference.

Hi, Yuan!

"Current location" is not asking you if you're still in China. It wants you to name the country you live in now.

 

[Yuan0516]

Hi, Yuan!

"Current location" is not asking you if you're still in China. It wants you to name the country you live in now.

But Im still in China... I mean I always be in China, so my current location is China

 

[GoesStation]

But Im still in China... I mean I always be in China, so my current location is China

Your profile shows your current location as "Yes". We don't know how that happened — it isn't a choice on the list — but we'd like you to change it to "China" (because that's where you are).

 

[Charlie Bernstein]

But Im still in China... I mean I have always been in China, so my current location is China.

We understand. So just put China in the box that asks for your current location.

That way our moderators won't be confused.

 

[Red5]

I think the issue with the 'location' information here was a software bug, and I believe that has now been fixed.

@Yuan0516 - You shouldn't need to worry about this any longer. Sorry for any inconvenience caused!

 

[Tarheel]

The difference between"trail"and"track"

Well, if you are tracking somebody you are trying to find out where they have been. If you are trailing somebody you might have that person in sight.

Have you found some example sentences for each word?

 

[Charlie Bernstein]

The two words often mean roughly the same thing.

In the sense of following someone or something, tracking is usually done in the wild - in a forest, for instance. When a detective follows someone, maybe through a city, that's trailing.

The two words have other meanings besides follow.

Tarheel, I like your answer, but you don't have a Like button. So now you know.

 

[Tarheel]

Piscean, sometimes the "like" button doesn't show up. (Maybe it just doesn't feel like it. ;-) )

 

[Charlie Bernstein]

He does. Two of us have clicked it.

It's back now. I did, too.

 

[Tdol]

In the sense of following someone or something, tracking is usually done in the wild - in a forest, for instance. When a detective follows someone, maybe through a city, that's trailing.

Electronic surveillance is tracking too.

 

[jutfrank]

I think it will help if we first get to the core meaning of the words in their verbal uses.

trail has the sense of following something

track has the sense of acquiring knowledge by using evidence left behind

 

[jutfrank]

I think it has the primary meaning of following the course or progress of something.

That's part of it but it doesn't get at the core sense, which is about acquiring some kind of knowledge/information.

You wouldn't track something without an intention do so.

 

[jutfrank]

There are very few things we do that we do without some intention to do them.

No, that's not the case at all!

Anyway, we're talking about verbs, not humans. It's not the case that the subject of every verb has a conscious mind.