1
as in path
a rough course or way formed by or as if by repeated footsteps
took a trail through the woods to get to the main road
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
2
as in track
a mark or series of marks left on a surface by something that has passed along it
the slugs left a slimy trail on the sidewalk
Synonyms & Similar Words
as in to track
to go after or on the track of
we trailed our friend into the woods, inadvertently spoiling his plans for a solitary hike
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of trail
Mike Lynch, Twin Cities, 10 Aug. 2025
Currently, Dart trails Russell Wilson and Jameis Winston on the depth chart.
—Justin Grasso, MSNBC Newsweek, 9 Aug. 2025
David Lyons, Sun Sentinel, 5 Aug. 2025
Yale’s endowment long has been managed spectacularly well and now totals more than $40 billion, the second largest university endowment in the country, trailing only Harvard’s.
—Chris Powell, Hartford Courant, 4 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for trail
Noun
Meteor showers occur when the Earth, in its orbit around the sun, runs into a trail of small debris left behind by a comet.
—Mike Lynch, Twin Cities, 10 Aug. 2025
Currently, Dart trails Russell Wilson and Jameis Winston on the depth chart.
—Justin Grasso, MSNBC Newsweek, 9 Aug. 2025
Verb
Spirit continues to lead all other carriers in passengers carried at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport, immediately trailed by JetBlue Airways and Southwest Airlines.
—David Lyons, Sun Sentinel, 5 Aug. 2025
Yale’s endowment long has been managed spectacularly well and now totals more than $40 billion, the second largest university endowment in the country, trailing only Harvard’s.
—Chris Powell, Hartford Courant, 4 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for trail
Recent Examples of Synonyms for trail
Noun
-
The Sandisk Keynote showed a path to a 512TB version by 2027 and 1PB product sometime in the future.—
Thomas Coughlin,
Forbes.com,
15 Aug. 2025
-
Gaza lives and traces for the rest of us paths to survival.—
Nima Hasan
August 15,
Literary Hub,
15 Aug. 2025
Noun
-
My best chance was to get back on the track and stay with them.—
Fred C. Mercer,
Outdoor Life,
14 Aug. 2025
-
Tropical Storm Erin is continuing on a westward path and is on track to strengthen into a major hurricane this weekend, according to the National Hurricane Center.—
Gabe Hauari,
USA Today,
14 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
Work with a travel agency to charter your very own expedition vessel to the poles: whether the fjords of the Arctic to toast champagne under the midnight sun, or Antarctica to chase the aurora australis.—
Erina Pinar,
Travel + Leisure,
7 Aug. 2025
-
American investors, asset managers, and technology companies are flowing East, chasing growth in emerging markets backed by sovereign wealth.—
Robert Daugherty,
Forbes.com,
7 Aug. 2025
Noun
-
No roads reach this untouched haven—only narrow, meandering footpaths.—
Lewis Nunn,
Forbes.com,
8 Aug. 2025
-
Douglass laid out the first of what would become fifty-nine avenues, a hundred and eighty footpaths, and four walks.—
Paige Williams,
New Yorker,
2 June 2025
Noun
-
Thompson said that the big break for the investigation was the discovery of the knife sheath containing trace amounts of DNA that prosecutors were able to link to Kohberger's father.—
Chris Spargo,
People.com,
4 Aug. 2025
-
With a shoulder-width stance and shoulders square to the basket, there wasn’t a trace of a bounce in Shappell’s form.—
Daniel Brown,
New York Times,
1 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
Toll hit on many of the same themes, outlining the fanaticism of the Japanese military and threats of a coup if their leaders tried to pursue peace.—
Brady Knox,
The Washington Examiner,
7 Aug. 2025
-
That insight led us to pursue community development grants, which aligned well with our goals.—
Christine Blake,
Forbes.com,
7 Aug. 2025
Noun
-
Whether working with the military community to transition service members and military spouses into cybersecurity roles or partnering with regional governments to bring analytics education into public institutions, the mission remains the same: to create equitable pathways into high-demand careers.—
Jay Garcia,
Forbes.com,
7 Aug. 2025
-
Given the high level of self-diagnosis online, including it in the DSM-5 could create better pathways to assessment and treatment.7 How Is It Treated?—
Angelica Bottaro,
Verywell Health,
7 Aug. 2025
Noun
-
Google says the new Gemma 3 270M can be tuned in a snap and maintains robust performance despite its small footprint.—
ArsTechnica,
ArsTechnica,
14 Aug. 2025
-
United could lease Spirit’s gates at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport, an essential move for enhancing its footprint in Florida.—
Trefis Team,
Forbes.com,
13 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Trail.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/trail. Accessed 19 Aug. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share