Synonyms of trailing

trailing 1 of 2

noun

as in pursuit

the act of going after or in the tracks of another

the detectives' trailing of the suspect led them to the stolen merchandise

Synonyms & Similar Words

• pursuit
• tracking
• tracing
• tailing
• chasing
• search
• chase
• shadowing
• pursuing
• tagging
• following
• dogging
• hounding
• hot pursuit
• trail
• track
• path
• seeking
• tagging along

trailing

2 of 2

verb

present participle of trail

as in chasing

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

• chasing
• tracking
• pursuing
• following
• escorting
• tailing
• tracing
• accompanying
• dogging
• hounding
• shadowing
• coursing
• tagging
• running after
• running
• watching
• bird-dogging
• hunting
• seeking
• eyeing
• observing
• chaperoning
• searching (for)

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• leading
• guiding
• heading
• piloting

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of trailing

Noun

Later, Gabriel tore Haaland’s shirt, the light-blue fabric trailing in the breeze as the pair chased a loose ball. — Jack Lang, New York Times, 5 July 2026

The graceful trailing stems and showy flowers of climbing hydrangeas (Hydrangea anomala) look beautiful growing on pergolas and fences. — Madeline Buiano, Martha Stewart, 27 June 2026

Over a century later, the Himalayan blackberry has spread far beyond the modest backyard bounds its importers envisioned, opting instead to take over indiscriminately and displace the native trailing blackberry (Rubus ursinus) in the process. — The Editors, JSTOR Daily, 25 June 2026

Austria was in striking distance trailing by one goal until the final moments, when Messi scored his second goal. — Charles Baggarly, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 22 June 2026

Positive trailing returns outside of tech are not a bad thing! — Josh Brown,sean Russo, CNBC, 15 June 2026

The combination has left New York trailing by as many as nine points. — Andrew Greif, NBC news, 9 June 2026

The bigger issue is that Jason Adam has pitched with a lead once in his past five appearances and Jeremiah Estrada has gone six appearances pitching in either a tie game or with the Padres trailing. — Kevin Acee, San Diego Union-Tribune, 4 June 2026

Training plants to stay off the ground instead of trailing prevents many common fungal diseases, fruit spots, and rots. — Megan Hughes, Better Homes & Gardens, 31 May 2026

Verb

Suspension was double wishbones with coil-over dampers and an anti-roll bar up front; twin trailing arms with double wishbones at the rear. — New Atlas, 11 July 2026

That poll showed Rasner — who won 24% of the vote in his 2024 challenge to now-Senate Majority Whip John Barrasso — trailing Gray by single digits, but losing support after voters were informed of his sexuality. — David Weigel, semafor.com, 10 July 2026

The four-time All-Star has been one of baseball's elite home run hitters for several seasons with 219 long balls since 2022, trailing only Aaron Judge (227) over that span. — ABC News, 10 July 2026

His match-winning brace against Brazil in the last 16 delivered Norway’s greatest result last Sunday, and his total of seven goals has the Manchester City forward trailing only Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe in the race for the Golden Boot. — Philip Buckingham, New York Times, 10 July 2026

The study examined 513 sell-side reports on large public companies from 2003 through 2022 and concluded that most analysts used a trailing P/E ratio rather than a discount rate. — Deena Zaidi, CNBC, 10 July 2026

Kane is currently fourth in the tournament’s Golden Boot race with six goals, trailing Argentina’s Lionel Messi, France’s Kylian Mbappe and Norway’s Erling Haaland. — Adam Lichtenstein, Sun Sentinel, 10 July 2026

Imanaga threw 102 pitches and had to leave early, trailing 1-0. — Paul Sullivan, Chicago Tribune, 10 July 2026

Felbermayr has won two of those races, trailing only Red Bull’s Alisha Palmowski, who has three wins halfway through the 2026 campaign. — Jerry Perez, The Drive, 9 July 2026