Trace vs. Follow — What's the Difference?
By Tayyaba Rehman — Updated on October 31, 2023
To trace is to find or discover something by investigating, while to follow means to go or come after something or someone.
Difference Between Trace and Follow
Table of Contents
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Key Differences
Tracing involves searching for or discovering something by examining evidence or clues. It often implies a detailed, meticulous process. Following, however, means to come or go after something or someone. It implies movement or adherence to a path, direction, or instruction.
When tracing a pattern or outline, precision is key. It involves replicating or outlining something with accuracy. Conversely, following a path doesn’t necessarily require precise replication. It’s more about moving along a set course or direction.
In investigations, to trace means to track down or locate. For instance, tracing a phone call involves pinpointing its origin. In the same context, to follow would mean to pursue or continue a course of action, like following leads in an investigation.
Tracing can also mean copying or mapping something, like tracing a drawing. It involves a direct overlay and duplication process. Following, in a similar artistic context, would mean to take inspiration or guidance from something, not necessarily copying it directly.
Comparison Chart
Definition
Searching or discovering by examining evidence.
Going or coming after something or someone.
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Implication
Detailed, meticulous process.
Movement or adherence to a path.
Usage in Art
Replicating or outlining with accuracy.
Taking inspiration or guidance.
Usage in Investigation
Tracking down or locating.
Pursuing or continuing a course of action.
Connotation
Often implies precision and detail.
Implies movement, adherence, or continuation.
Compare with Definitions
Trace
To outline or copy by drawing over.
She traced the flower pattern onto the fabric.
Follow
To go or come after someone or something.
The puppy followed her everywhere she went.
Trace
Find or discover by investigation
Police are trying to trace a white van seen in the area
Follow
To understand the continuity or logic of something.
I couldn't follow the complex plot of the movie.
Trace
Copy (a drawing, map, or design) by drawing over its lines on a superimposed piece of transparent paper
Trace a map of the world on to a large piece of paper
Follow
To imitate or do as someone else does.
Younger siblings often follow their older siblings' behavior.
Trace
A mark, object, or other indication of the existence or passing of something
Remove all traces of the old adhesive
The aircraft disappeared without trace
Follow
Go or come after (a person or thing proceeding ahead); move or travel behind
The men followed in another car
She went back into the house, and Ben followed her
Trace
A very small quantity, especially one too small to be accurately measured
His body contained traces of amphetamines
Trace quantities of PCBs
Follow
Come after in time or order
The rates are as follows
The six years that followed his restoration
Trace
A procedure to investigate the source of something, such as the place from which a telephone call was made
We've got a trace on the call
Follow
Act according to (an instruction or precept)
He has difficulty in following written instructions
Trace
A line which represents the projection of a curve or surface on a plane or the intersection of a curve or surface with a plane.
Follow
Pay close attention to
I've been following this discussion closely
Trace
A path or track.
Follow
Practise (a trade or profession).
Trace
The sum of the elements in the principal diagonal of a square matrix.
Follow
To come or go after; proceed behind
Follow the usher to your seat.
Trace
Each of the two side straps, chains, or ropes by which a horse is attached to a vehicle that it is pulling.
Follow
To go after in pursuit
Would follow his enemy to the ends of the earth.
Trace
A visible mark, such as a footprint, made or left by the passage of a person, animal, or thing.
Follow
To keep under surveillance
The agent followed the suspect around town.
Trace
Evidence or an indication of the former presence or existence of something; a vestige
Left without a trace of having been there.
Follow
To move along the course of; take
We followed the path.
Trace
An extremely small amount or barely perceivable indication
Spoke with a trace of sarcasm.
Follow
To move in the direction of; be guided by
Followed the sun westward.
Followed the signs to the zoo.
Trace
A constituent, such as a chemical compound or element, present in quantities less than a standard limit.
Follow
To lie in the same path as
The road follows the old trading route.
Trace
A path or trail that has been beaten out by the passage of animals or people.
Follow
To be parallel to
The road follows the river.
Trace
An act of researching or ascertaining the origin or location of something
Put a trace on the phone call.
Asked for a trace on a lost package.
Follow
To accept the guidance, command, or leadership of
Follow a spiritual master.
Rebels who refused to follow their leader.
Trace
A line drawn by a recording instrument, such as a cardiograph.
Follow
To adhere to; practice
Followed family traditions.
Trace
The point at which a line, or the curve in which a surface, intersects a coordinate plane.
Follow
To take as a model or precedent; imitate
Followed my example and resigned.
Trace
The sum of the elements of the principal diagonal of a matrix.
Follow
To act in agreement or compliance with; obey
Follow the rules.
Follow one's instincts.
Trace
An engram.
Follow
To keep to or stick to
Followed the recipe.
Follow a diet.
Trace
One of two side straps or chains connecting a harnessed draft animal to a vehicle or whiffletree.
Follow
To engage in (a trade or occupation); work at.
Trace
A bar or rod, hinged at either end to another part, that transfers movement from one part of a machine to another.
Follow
To come after in order, time, or position
Night follows day.
Trace
To go along or follow (a path, for example)
We traced the trail up the mountain.
Follow
To bring something about at a later time than or as a consequence of
She followed her lecture with a question-and-answer period. The band followed its hit album with a tour.
Trace
To follow the course or trail of
Trace a wounded deer.
Follow
To occur or be evident as a consequence of
Your conclusion does not follow your premise.
Trace
To ascertain the successive stages in the development or progress of
Tracing the life cycle of an insect.
Trace the history of a family.
Follow
To watch or observe closely
Followed the bird through binoculars.
Trace
To discover or determine by searching or researching evidence
Trace the cause of a disease.
Follow
To be attentive to; pay close heed to
Too sleepy to follow the sermon.
Trace
To locate or ascertain the origin of
Traced the money to a foreign bank account.
Follow
To keep oneself informed of the course, progress, or fortunes of
Follow the stock market.
Followed the local teams.
Trace
To draw (a line or figure); sketch; delineate.
Follow
To grasp the meaning or logic of; understand
Do you follow my argument?.
Trace
To form (letters) with special concentration or care.
Follow
To come, move, or take place after another person or thing in order or time.
Trace
To copy by following lines seen through a sheet of transparent paper.
Follow
To occur or be evident as a consequence; result
If you ignore your diet, trouble will follow.
Trace
To follow closely (a prescribed pattern)
The skater traced a figure eight.
Follow
To grasp the meaning or reasoning of something; understand.
Trace
To imprint (a design) by pressure with an instrument on a superimposed pattern.
Follow
(Games) A billiards shot in which the cue ball is struck above center so that it follows the path of the object ball after impact.
Trace
To make a design or series of markings on (a surface) by such pressure on a pattern.
Follow
(ambitransitive) To go after; to pursue; to move behind in the same path or direction, especially with the intent of catching.
Follow that car!
She left the room and I followed.
Trace
To record (a variable), as on a graph.
Follow
(ambitransitive) To go or come after in a sequence.
B follows A in the alphabet.
We both ordered the soup, with roast beef to follow.
Trace
To make one's way along a trail or course
We traced along the ridge.
Follow
(transitive) To carry out (orders, instructions, etc.).
Follow these instructions to the letter.
Trace
To have origins; be traceable
Linguistic features that trace to West Africa.
Follow
(transitive) To live one's life according to (religion, teachings, etc).
Trace
Occurring in extremely small amounts or in quantities less than a standard limit.
Follow
(transitive) To understand, to pay attention to.
Do you follow me?
Trace
An act of tracing.
Your cell phone company can put a trace on your line.
Follow
(transitive) To watch, to keep track of (reports of) some event or person.
I followed the incumbent throughout the election.
My friends don't regularly follow the news.
Trace
An enquiry sent out for a missing article, such as a letter or an express package.
Follow
To subscribe to see content from an account on a social media platform.
If you want to see more of our articles, follow us on Twitter.
Trace
A mark left as a sign of passage of a person or animal.
Follow
(ambitransitive) To be a logical consequence of something.
It follows that if two numbers are not equal then one is larger than the other.
If you don't practise proper hygiene, illness is sure to follow.
Trace
A residue of some substance or material.
There are traces of chocolate around your lips.
Follow
(transitive) To walk in, as a road or course; to attend upon closely, as a profession or calling.
Trace
A very small amount.
All of our chocolates may contain traces of nuts.
Follow
In billiards and similar games, a stroke causing a ball to follow another ball after hitting it.
A follow shot
Trace
(electronics) A current-carrying conductive pathway on a printed circuit board.
Follow
(social media) The act of following another user's online activity.
Trace
An informal road or prominent path in an arid area.
Follow
To go or come after; to move behind in the same path or direction; hence, to go with (a leader, guide, etc.); to accompany; to attend.
It waves me forth again; I'll follow it.
Trace
One of two straps, chains, or ropes of a harness, extending from the collar or breastplate to a whippletree attached to a vehicle or thing to be drawn; a tug.
Follow
To endeavor to overtake; to go in pursuit of; to chase; to pursue; to prosecute.
I will harden the hearts of the Egyptians, and they shall follow them.
Trace
(engineering) A connecting bar or rod, pivoted at each end to the end of another piece, for transmitting motion, especially from one plane to another; specifically, such a piece in an organ stop action to transmit motion from the trundle to the lever actuating the stop slider.
Follow
To accept as authority; to adopt the opinions of; to obey; to yield to; to take as a rule of action; as, to follow good advice.
Approve the best, and follow what I approve
Follow peace with all men.
It is most agreeable to some men to follow their reason; and to others to follow their appetites.
Trace
(fortification) The ground plan of a work or works.
Follow
To copy after; to take as an example.
We had rather follow the perfections of them whom we like not, than in defects resemble them whom we love.
Trace
(geometry) The intersection of a plane of projection, or an original plane, with a coordinate plane.
Follow
To succeed in order of time, rank, or office.
Trace
(mathematics) The sum of the diagonal elements of a square matrix.
Follow
To result from, as an effect from a cause, or an inference from a premise.
Trace
(grammar) An empty category occupying a position in the syntactic structure from which something has been moved, used to explain constructions such as wh-movement and the passive.
Follow
To watch, as a receding object; to keep the eyes fixed upon while in motion; to keep the mind upon while in progress, as a speech, musical performance, etc.; also, to keep up with; to understand the meaning, connection, or force of, as of a course of thought or argument.
He followed with his eyes the flitting shade.
Trace
(transitive) To follow the trail of.
Follow
To walk in, as a road or course; to attend upon closely, as a profession or calling.
O, had I but followed the arts!
O Antony! I have followed thee to this.
Trace
To follow the history of.
Follow
To go or come after; - used in the various senses of the transitive verb: To pursue; to attend; to accompany; to be a result; to imitate.
Trace
(transitive) To draw or sketch lightly or with care.
He carefully traced the outlines of the old building before him.
Follow
The art or process of following; specif., in some games, as billiards, a stroke causing a ball to follow another ball after hitting it. Also used adjectively; as, follow shot.
Trace
(transitive) To copy onto a sheet of paper superimposed over the original, by drawing over its lines.
Follow
To travel behind, go after, come after;
The ducklings followed their mother around the pond
Please follow the guide through the museum
Trace
To copy; to imitate.
Follow
Be later in time;
Tuesday always follows Monday
Trace
To walk; to go; to travel.
Follow
Come as a logical consequence; follow logically;
It follows that your assertion is false
The theorem falls out nicely
Trace
To walk over; to pass through; to traverse.
Follow
Travel along a certain course;
Follow the road
Follow the trail
Trace
To follow the execution of the program by making it to stop after every instruction, or by making it print a message after every step.
Follow
Act in accordance with someone's rules, commands, or wishes;
He complied with my instructions
You must comply or else!
Follow these simple rules
Abide by the rules
Trace
One of two straps, chains, or ropes of a harness, extending from the collar or breastplate to a whiffletree attached to a vehicle or thing to be drawn; a tug.
Follow
Come after in time, as a result;
A terrible tsunami followed the earthquake
Trace
A connecting bar or rod, pivoted at each end to the end of another piece, for transmitting motion, esp. from one plane to another; specif., such a piece in an organ-stop action to transmit motion from the trundle to the lever actuating the stop slider.
Follow
Behave in accordance or in agreement with;
Follow a pattern
Follow my example
Trace
A mark left by anything passing; a track; a path; a course; a footprint; a vestige; as, the trace of a carriage or sled; the trace of a deer; a sinuous trace.
Follow
Be next;
Mary plays best, with John and Sue following
Trace
A very small quantity of an element or compound in a given substance, especially when so small that the amount is not quantitatively determined in an analysis; - hence, in stating an analysis, often contracted to tr.
Follow
Choose and follow; as of theories, ideas, policies, strategies or plans;
She followed the feminist movement
The candidate espouses Republican ideals
Trace
A mark, impression, or visible appearance of anything left when the thing itself no longer exists; remains; token; vestige.
The shady empire shall retain no traceOf war or blood, but in the sylvan chase.
Follow
To bring something about at a later time than;
She followed dinner with a brandy
He followed his lecture with a question and answer period
Trace
The intersection of a plane of projection, or an original plane, with a coordinate plane.
Follow
Imitate in behavior; take as a model;
Teenagers follow their friends in everything
Trace
The ground plan of a work or works.
Follow
Follow, discover, or ascertain the course of development of something;
We must follow closely the economic development is Cuba
Trace the student's progress
Trace
To mark out; to draw or delineate with marks; especially, to copy, as a drawing or engraving, by following the lines and marking them on a sheet superimposed, through which they appear; as, to trace a figure or an outline; a traced drawing.
Some faintly traced features or outline of the mother and the child, slowly lading into the twilight of the woods.
Follow
Follow with the eyes or the mind;
Keep an eye on the baby, please!
The world is watching Sarajevo
She followed the men with the binoculars
Trace
To follow by some mark that has been left by a person or thing which has preceded; to follow by footsteps, tracks, or tokens.
You may trace the deluge quite round the globe.
I feel thy power . . . to trace the waysOf highest agents.
Follow
Be the successor (of);
Carter followed Ford
Will Charles succeed to the throne?
Trace
Hence, to follow the trace or track of.
How all the way the prince on footpace traced.
Follow
Perform an accompaniment to;
The orchestra could barely follow the frequent pitch changes of the soprano
Trace
To copy; to imitate.
That servile path thou nobly dost decline,Of tracing word, and line by line.
Follow
Keep informed;
He kept up on his country's foreign policies
Trace
To walk over; to pass through; to traverse.
We do tracethis alley up and down.
Follow
To be the product or result;
Melons come from a vine
Understanding comes from experience
Trace
To walk; to go; to travel.
Not wont on foot with heavy arms to trace.
Follow
Accept and follow the leadership or command or guidance of;
Let's follow our great helmsman!
She followed a guru for years
Trace
A just detectable amount;
He speaks French with a trace of an accent
Follow
Adhere to or practice;
These people still follow the laws of their ancient religion
Trace
An indication that something has been present;
There wasn't a trace of evidence for the claim
A tincture of condescension
Follow
Work in a specific place, with a specific subject, or in a specific function;
He is a herpetologist
She is our resident philosopher
Trace
A suggestion of some quality;
There was a touch of sarcasm in his tone
He detected a ghost of a smile on her face
Follow
Keep under surveillance;
The police had been following him for weeks but they could not prove his involvement in the bombing
Trace
Drawing created by tracing
Follow
Follow in or as if in pursuit;
The police car pursued the suspected attacker
Her bad deed followed her and haunted her dreams all her life
Trace
Either of two lines that connect a horse's harness to a wagon or other vehicle or to a whiffletree
Follow
Grasp the meaning;
Can you follow her argument?
When he lectures, I cannot follow
Trace
A visible mark (as a footprint) left by the passage of person or animal or vehicle
Follow
Keep to;
Stick to your principles
Stick to the diet
Trace
Follow, discover, or ascertain the course of development of something;
We must follow closely the economic development is Cuba
Trace the student's progress
Follow
To act according to instructions or a plan.
He followed the recipe to make the cake.
Trace
Make a mark or lines on a surface;
Draw a line
Trace the outline of a figure in the sand
Follow
To occur as a result or consequence.
Success often follows hard work.
Trace
To go back over again;
We retraced the route we took last summer
Trace your path
Trace
Pursue or chase relentlessly;
The hunters traced the deer into the woods
The detectives hounded the suspect until they found the him
Trace
Discover traces of;
She traced the circumstances of her birth
Trace
Make one's course or travel along a path; travel or pass over, around, or along;
The children traced along the edge of the drak forest
The women traced the pasture
Trace
Copy by following the lines of the original drawing on a transparent sheet placed upon it; make a tracing of;
Trace a design
Trace a pattern
Trace
Read with difficulty;
Can you decipher this letter?
The archeologist traced the hieroglyphs
Trace
To find something by careful investigation.
The detectives managed to trace the suspect's whereabouts.
Trace
To find the origin or course of something.
They traced the source of the leak to a broken pipe.
Trace
To show evidence or signs of something.
The fossils trace the existence of ancient creatures.
Trace
To follow a route or path closely.
He traced the old hiking trail through the woods.
Common Curiosities
What does it mean to trace something?
Tracing means to find or outline something by investigating or copying.
How does following differ from tracing?
Following involves coming after or adhering to something, while tracing involves discovery or outlining.
Can trace be used in a digital context?
Yes, you can trace digital footprints or transactions.
Is following always physical?
No, following can also mean understanding or imitating.
Is it possible to trace one's ancestry?
Yes, tracing ancestry involves researching family history.
Can you follow a set of instructions?
Yes, following instructions means adhering to them.
Can tracing be used in investigations?
Yes, tracing is often used to locate or find evidence.
Is tracing considered a skill?
Yes, tracing requires precision and attention to detail.
Do artists use tracing?
Yes, artists may trace outlines for precision.
Can you follow a story?
Yes, following a story means understanding its plot and progression.
What does it mean to follow someone’s advice?
It means to take and act upon the guidance given by someone.
What does it mean to follow a trend?
It means to adopt or engage in a popular trend.
How do children learn to follow?
Children learn to follow by imitating and listening to guidance.
Can tracing be creative?
Yes, tracing can be part of a creative process, especially in art and design.
Is tracing always physical?
No, it can also be metaphorical, like tracing the origins of a word.
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Written by
Tayyaba RehmanTayyaba Rehman is a distinguished writer, currently serving as a primary contributor to askdifference.com. As a researcher in semantics and etymology, Tayyaba's passion for the complexity of languages and their distinctions has found a perfect home on the platform. Tayyaba delves into the intricacies of language, distinguishing between commonly confused words and phrases, thereby providing clarity for readers worldwide.
