Defn: See under T.
TRAIL Trail, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Trailed; p. pr. & vb. n. Trailing.] Etym: [OE. trailen, OF. trailler to trail a deer, or hunt him upon a cold scent, also, to hunt or pursue him with a limehound, F. trailler to trail a fishing line; probably from a derivative of L. trahere to draw; cf. L. traha a drag, sledge, tragula a kind of drag net, a small sledge, Sp. trailla a leash, an instrument for leveling the ground, D. treilen to draw with a rope, to tow, treil a rope for drawing a boat. See Trace, v. t.]
1. To hunt by the track; to track. Halliwell.
2. To draw or drag, as along the ground.
And hung his head, and trailed his legs along. Dryden.
They shall not trail me through their streets Like a wild beast.
Milton.
Long behind he trails his pompous robe. Pope.
3. (Mil.)
Defn: To carry, as a firearm, with the breech near the ground and the upper part inclined forward, the piece being held by the right hand near the middle.
4. To tread down, as grass, by walking through it; to lay flat. Longfellow.
5. To take advantage of the ignorance of; to impose upon. [Prov.
Eng.]
I presently perceived she was (what is vernacularly termed) trailing
Mrs. Dent; that is, playing on her ignorance. C. Bronte.
TRAIL
Trail, v. i.
1. To be drawn out in length; to follow after. When his brother saw the red blood trail. Spenser.