Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This

American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

track       (trāk)  Pronunciation Key  n.   A mark or succession of marks left by something that has passed. A path, route, or course indicated by such marks: an old wagon track through the mountains. A course of action; a method of proceeding: on the right track for solving the puzzle. An intended or proper course: putting a stalled project back on track. A course laid out for running or racing. Athletic competition on such a course; track events. Track and field. A distinct path, as along a length of film or magnetic tape, on which sound, images, or other information is recorded. A distinct selection from a sound recording, such as a phonograph record or compact disk, usually containing an individual work or part of a larger work: the title track of an album. One of the separate sound recordings that are combined so as to be heard simultaneously, as in stereophonic sound reproduction: mixed the vocal track and instrumental track. A path along which something moves; a course: following the track of an airplane on radar. A course of action; a method of proceeding: on the right track for solving the puzzle. An intended or proper course: putting a stalled project back on track. A course laid out for running or racing. Athletic competition on such a course; track events. Track and field. A distinct path, as along a length of film or magnetic tape, on which sound, images, or other information is recorded. A distinct selection from a sound recording, such as a phonograph record or compact disk, usually containing an individual work or part of a larger work: the title track of an album. One of the separate sound recordings that are combined so as to be heard simultaneously, as in stereophonic sound reproduction: mixed the vocal track and instrumental track. A succession of ideas; a train of thought. Awareness of something occurring or passing: keeping track of the score; lost all track of time. Sports A course laid out for running or racing. Athletic competition on such a course; track events. Track and field. A distinct path, as along a length of film or magnetic tape, on which sound, images, or other information is recorded. A distinct selection from a sound recording, such as a phonograph record or compact disk, usually containing an individual work or part of a larger work: the title track of an album. One of the separate sound recordings that are combined so as to be heard simultaneously, as in stereophonic sound reproduction: mixed the vocal track and instrumental track. A rail or set of parallel rails upon which railroad cars or other vehicles run. tracks The boundary, formerly often delineated by train tracks, that separates two neighborhoods of different social class: grew up on the wrong side of the tracks. Either of the continuous metal belts with which vehicles such as bulldozers and tanks move over the ground. A metal groove or ridge that holds, guides, and reduces friction for a moving device or apparatus. Any of several courses of study to which students are assigned according to ability, achievement, or needs: academic, vocational, and general tracks. A distinct path, as along a length of film or magnetic tape, on which sound, images, or other information is recorded. A distinct selection from a sound recording, such as a phonograph record or compact disk, usually containing an individual work or part of a larger work: the title track of an album. One of the separate sound recordings that are combined so as to be heard simultaneously, as in stereophonic sound reproduction: mixed the vocal track and instrumental track. Computer Science One of the concentric magnetic rings that form the separate data storage areas on a floppy disk or a hard disk. tracks Slang Needle marks on the skin from multiple intravenous injections, considered an indication of habitual drug use. v.   tracked, track·ing, tracks v.   tr. To follow the tracks of; trail: tracking game through the forest. To move over or along; traverse. To carry on the shoes and deposit: tracked mud on the rug. To observe or monitor the course of (aircraft, for example), as by radar. To observe the progress of; follow: tracking the company's performance daily. To equip with a track. To assign (a student) to a curricular track. v.   intr. To move along a track. To follow a course; travel. To keep a constant distance apart. Used of a pair of wheels. To be in alignment. To follow the undulations in the groove of a phonograph record. Used of a needle. To move across magnetic heads. Used of magnetic tape. Phrasal Verb(s): track down To pursue until found or captured: "When, like a running grave, time tracks you down" (Dylan Thomas). Idiom(s): in (one's) tracks Exactly where one is standing: stopped him right in his tracks. [Middle English trak, from Old French trac, perhaps of Germanic origin.] track'a·ble adj., track'er n.

Online Etymology Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
track  (n.)

WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This

track
noun
1.	a line or route along which something travels or moves; "the hurricane demolished houses in its path"; "the track of an animal"; "the course of the river" [syn: path]
2.	evidence pointing to a possible solution; "the police are following a promising lead"; "the trail led straight to the perpetrator" [syn: lead]
3.	a pair of parallel rails providing a runway for wheels
4.	a course over which races are run [syn: racetrack]
5.	a distinct selection of music from a recording or a compact disc; "he played the first cut on the cd"; "the title track of the album" [syn: cut]
6.	an endless metal belt on which tracked vehicles move over the ground
7.	(computer science) one of the circular magnetic paths on a magnetic disk that serve as a guide for writing and reading data
8.	a groove on a phonograph recording
9.	a bar or pair of parallel bars of rolled steel making the railway along which railroad cars or other vehicles can roll
10.	any road or path affording passage especially a rough one
11.	the act of participating in an athletic competition involving running on a track
verb
1.	carry on the feet and deposit; "track mud into the house"
2.	observe or plot the moving path of something; "track a missile"
3.	go after with the intent to catch; "The policeman chased the mugger down the alley"; "the dog chased the rabbit" [syn: chase]
4.	travel across or pass over; "The caravan covered almost 100 miles each day" [syn: traverse]
5.	make tracks upon

American Heritage Dictionary of Idioms - Cite This Source - Share This

track

In addition to the idioms beginning with track, also see cover one's tracks; drop in one's tracks; fast track; follow in someone's footsteps (tracks); inside track; jump the track; keep (lose) track; make tracks; off the beaten track; off the track; one-track mind; on the right tack (track); right side of the tracks; stop cold (in one's tracks).

Free On-line Dictionary of Computing - Cite This Source - Share This

track storage
The part of a disk which passes under one read/write head while the head is stationary. The number of tracks on a disk surface therefore corresponds to the number of different radial positions of the head(s). The collection of all tracks on all surfaces at a given radial position is known a cylinder and each track is divided into sectors.
(1997-07-15)

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

Track

Track\, n. [OF. trac track of horses, mules, trace of animals; of Teutonic origin; cf.D. trek a drawing, trekken to draw, travel, march, MHG. trechen, pret. trach. Cf. Trick.]

1. A mark left by something that has passed along; as, the track, or wake, of a ship; the track of a meteor; the track of a sled or a wheel.

The bright track of his fiery car. --Shak.

2. A mark or impression left by the foot, either of man or beast; trace; vestige; footprint.

Far from track of men. --Milton.

3. (Zo["o]l.) The entire lower surface of the foot; -- said of birds, etc.

4. A road; a beaten path.

Behold Torquatus the same track pursue. --Dryden.

5. Course; way; as, the track of a comet.

6. A path or course laid out for a race, for exercise, etc.

7. (Railroad) The permanent way; the rails.

8. [Perhaps a mistake for tract.] A tract or area, as of land. [Obs.] "Small tracks of ground." --Fuller.

Track scale, a railway scale. See under Railway.

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

Track

Track\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. tracked; p. pr. & vb. n. tracking.] To follow the tracks or traces of; to pursue by following the marks of the feet; to trace; to trail; as, to track a deer in the snow.

It was often found impossible to track the robbers to their retreats among the hills and morasses. --Macaulay.

2. (Naut.) To draw along continuously, as a vessel, by a line, men or animals on shore being the motive power; to tow.