trail
verb
uk/treɪl/ us [ I or T ]
to be less successful than competitors or than expected:
This company's shares have left most rivals trailing.
Precious-metal stocks trailed, at 124.35.
trail behind sth Prices of mortgage-backed securities trailed behind the gains of the Treasury.
Internet access in the U.S. trails Japan when it comes to speed.
[ T ]
to advertise something before it is available to buy, see, use, etc:
The heavily trailed announcements on ISA changes were widely welcomed.
The home secretary trailed his new law in an article in a newspaper yesterday.
[ I or T ]
to happen after or follow something:
trail behind sth The service, free at the point of use, perpetually trails behind demand.
History suggests that consumer spending declines usually trail consumer confidence declines by about 3 months.
Phrasal verb
trail off
trail
noun [ C, usually singular ]
uk/treɪl/ usa series of activities that someone does in order to achieve something:
acquisition/campaign/comeback trail The bank's acquisition trail across the globe might slow a little although it continues to look at potential opportunities.
be on/go on/hit the trail
to be trying to find, get, or achieve something:
He tells candidates to raise money early, before they hit the trail for speeches and handshakes.
blaze a/the trail
to be the first to do something new:
Netscape and Hotmail were both swallowed up after blazing the trail for larger, less agile competitors.
I'm not blazing a trail for women, I'm doing this for myself.
(hot) on the trail (of sth)
very close to finding or achieving something:
NPR's reporter is hot on the trail of the story.
leave a trail of sth
to leave a series or number of things behind you:
His company went into liquidation leaving a trail of debts.
Over the past 12 months, the company has underperformed the index by over 20%, leaving a trail of disappointed investors.
See also
audit trail
paper trail