trace (EN)

verb, noun

verb “trace”

1. to follow the trail of; to find
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   The detective traced the missing child's steps through the park.
2. to discover the origins of
   He traced his ancestors to a small village in Italy.
3. to draw (a line)
   He carefully traced a straight line on the paper with his pencil.
4. to create a copy of a drawing or map by drawing over it on a see-through paper
   She carefully traced the outline of the butterfly from the book onto the tracing paper.
5. to follow the shape of (an object) with a finger or tool
   He traced the road in the map with his finger to find the hidden treasure.
6. (in computing) to monitor and report each step of a program as it runs
   The developer used a special tool to trace the program.

noun “trace”

1. something left behind that shows someone or something was there
   The archaeologists found traces of ancient pottery buried in the ground.
2. a mark left on the ground showing where a person or animal has passed
   The hunter found a trace of deer tracks in the muddy ground.
3. a small amount of material left behind that shows something was present
   I found traces of paint on my shirt after the art class.
4. a tiny amount, often used to describe how much of one substance is mixed with another
   There was only a trace of sugar left in the jar.
5. an investigation to find information, especially to identify where a phone call came from
   The detective ordered a trace to find out who made the mysterious phone call.
6. one of the pair of straps used to attach a horse to a vehicle it pulls
   The farmer checked the traces to make sure they were securely attached to the horse before starting the journey.
7. (in mathematics) the sum of the diagonal of a matrix
   To find the trace of the matrix, simply add up the numbers on its main diagonal.