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Definition of "tracing" []

  • A reproduction made by superimposing a transparent sheet and copying the lines of the original on it. (noun)
  • A graphic record made by a recording instrument, such as a cardiograph or seismograph. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Use "tracing" in a sentence
  • "Those (says he) who seek to discover hidden things and know the future have invented an art which they call tracing or smiting the sand; to wit, they take paper or sand or flour and trace thereon at hazard four rows of points, which operation, three times repeated (i.e. four times performed), gives sixteen rows."
  • "The ensuing difficulty in tracing such ownership is now at the heart of the courts 'objections and the compelling argument for a government-enforced national moratorium on home foreclosures to provide sufficient time to sort this mess out."
  • "The windows fog milky with conversation, uninterrupted by the bleating of a hospital monitor, and absentmindedly I begin tracing shapes: Pacmen, stars."