Trace vs. Follow: What's the Difference?
Edited by Aimie Carlson || By Janet White || Published on October 2, 2023
Trace involves discovering by investigation or finding remnants; Follow implies going or coming after, or adhering to directions or instructions.
Key Differences
The term "Trace" often denotes tracking or discovering something by investigating signs or remnants left behind. It implies a process of searching and uncovering, often associated with uncovering history, origins, or causes. Conversely, "Follow" generally means to go or come after someone or something in a physical or chronological sequence. It implies adherence to a path, sequence, or set of instructions or guidelines, and it can also denote comprehension or understanding.
While tracing often involves a detailed and focused examination or study to uncover information, following typically requires adherence, observance, or obedience to a predetermined path or set of instructions. Tracing may lead to the discovery of origins, pathways, or developments, revealing unknown or hidden details. Following, on the other hand, presupposes a known path or sequence and entails staying true to it.
In practical contexts, one might trace a person’s ancestry to uncover familial roots and heritage, delving into records and histories. In contrast, one might follow a recipe, adhering to listed ingredients and step-by-step instructions, to cook a dish. Here, tracing uncovers and reveals, while following replicates and adheres.
In the technological realm, to trace might mean to uncover the path or origin of data or communications, investigating links and connections. To follow in technology might imply adhering to a sequence of operations or algorithms, or it could mean to subscribe to updates or feeds from specific sources or platforms.
In artistic contexts, tracing can refer to copying by following lines appearing through translucent paper, replicating an existing image or design. Following, in the same context, could mean creating art by adhering to a style, technique, or trend, reflecting established norms or practices.
ADVERTISEMENT
Comparison Chart
Purpose
To discover or uncover by investigation.
To go or come after; to adhere to instructions or directions.
Activity
Involves examination or study.
Requires adherence or observance.
Implication
Uncovering unknown or hidden details.
Replicating or adhering to known sequences.
Context
Broader, involving search and discovery.
Generally more straightforward, involving obedience or adherence.
Outcome
Revelation of information or history.
Completion or continuation of a sequence or path.
ADVERTISEMENT
Trace and Follow Definitions
Trace
Trace means to discover or find out by investigation.
Detectives are working to trace the origins of the illegal substance.
Follow
Follow means to come or go after.
The ducklings follow their mother everywhere.
Trace
Trace implies copying by following lines through translucent paper.
She used tracing paper to trace the image.
Follow
Follow implies adhering to instructions or directions.
Please follow the recipe to ensure the dish turns out well.
Trace
A visible mark, such as a footprint, made or left by the passage of a person, animal, or thing.
Follow
Follow denotes being a logical consequence.
Success will follow hard work.
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 come or go after; proceed behind
Follow the usher to your seat.
Trace
An extremely small amount or barely perceivable indication
Spoke with a trace of sarcasm.
Follow
To go after in pursuit
Would follow his enemy to the ends of the earth.
Trace
A constituent, such as a chemical compound or element, present in quantities less than a standard limit.
Follow
To keep under surveillance
The agent followed the suspect around town.
Trace
A path or trail that has been beaten out by the passage of animals or people.
Follow
To move along the course of; take
We followed the path.
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 move in the direction of; be guided by
Followed the sun westward.
Followed the signs to the zoo.
Trace
A line drawn by a recording instrument, such as a cardiograph.
Follow
To lie in the same path as
The road follows the old trading route.
Trace
The point at which a line, or the curve in which a surface, intersects a coordinate plane.
Follow
To be parallel to
The road follows the river.
Trace
The sum of the elements of the principal diagonal of a matrix.
Follow
To accept the guidance, command, or leadership of
Follow a spiritual master.
Rebels who refused to follow their leader.
Trace
An engram.
Follow
To adhere to; practice
Followed family traditions.
Trace
One of two side straps or chains connecting a harnessed draft animal to a vehicle or whiffletree.
Follow
To take as a model or precedent; imitate
Followed my example and resigned.
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 act in agreement or compliance with; obey
Follow the rules.
Follow one's instincts.
Trace
To go along or follow (a path, for example)
We traced the trail up the mountain.
Follow
To keep to or stick to
Followed the recipe.
Follow a diet.
Trace
To follow the course or trail of
Trace a wounded deer.
Follow
To engage in (a trade or occupation); work at.
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 come after in order, time, or position
Night follows day.
Trace
To discover or determine by searching or researching evidence
Trace the cause of a disease.
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 locate or ascertain the origin of
Traced the money to a foreign bank account.
Follow
To occur or be evident as a consequence of
Your conclusion does not follow your premise.
Trace
To draw (a line or figure); sketch; delineate.
Follow
To watch or observe closely
Followed the bird through binoculars.
Trace
To form (letters) with special concentration or care.
Follow
To be attentive to; pay close heed to
Too sleepy to follow the sermon.
Trace
To copy by following lines seen through a sheet of transparent paper.
Follow
To keep oneself informed of the course, progress, or fortunes of
Follow the stock market.
Followed the local teams.
Trace
To follow closely (a prescribed pattern)
The skater traced a figure eight.
Follow
To grasp the meaning or logic of; understand
Do you follow my argument?.
Trace
To imprint (a design) by pressure with an instrument on a superimposed pattern.
Follow
To come, move, or take place after another person or thing in order or time.
Trace
To make a design or series of markings on (a surface) by such pressure on a pattern.
Follow
To occur or be evident as a consequence; result
If you ignore your diet, trouble will follow.
Trace
To record (a variable), as on a graph.
Follow
To grasp the meaning or reasoning of something; understand.
Trace
To make one's way along a trail or course
We traced along the ridge.
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 have origins; be traceable
Linguistic features that trace to West Africa.
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
Occurring in extremely small amounts or in quantities less than a standard limit.
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
An act of tracing.
Your cell phone company can put a trace on your line.
Follow
(transitive) To carry out (orders, instructions, etc.).
Follow these instructions to the letter.
Trace
An enquiry sent out for a missing article, such as a letter or an express package.
Follow
(transitive) To live one's life according to (religion, teachings, etc).
Trace
A mark left as a sign of passage of a person or animal.
Follow
(transitive) To understand, to pay attention to.
Do you follow me?
Trace
A residue of some substance or material.
There are traces of chocolate around your lips.
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
A very small amount.
All of our chocolates may contain traces of nuts.
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
(electronics) A current-carrying conductive pathway on a printed circuit board.
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
An informal road or prominent path in an arid area.
Follow
(transitive) To walk in, as a road or course; to attend upon closely, as a profession or calling.
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
In billiards and similar games, a stroke causing a ball to follow another ball after hitting it.
A follow shot
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
(social media) The act of following another user's online activity.
Trace
(fortification) The ground plan of a work or works.
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
(geometry) The intersection of a plane of projection, or an original plane, with a coordinate plane.
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
(mathematics) The sum of the diagonal elements of a square matrix.
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
(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 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
(transitive) To follow the trail of.
Follow
To succeed in order of time, rank, or office.
Trace
To follow the history of.
Follow
To result from, as an effect from a cause, or an inference from a premise.
Trace
(transitive) To draw or sketch lightly or with care.
He carefully traced the outlines of the old building before him.
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 copy onto a sheet of paper superimposed over the original, by drawing over its lines.
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 copy; to imitate.
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
To walk; to go; to travel.
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
To walk over; to pass through; to traverse.
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 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
Be later in time;
Tuesday always follows Monday
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 as a logical consequence; follow logically;
It follows that your assertion is false
The theorem falls out nicely
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
Travel along a certain course;
Follow the road
Follow the trail
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
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
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
Come after in time, as a result;
A terrible tsunami followed the earthquake
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
Behave in accordance or in agreement with;
Follow a pattern
Follow my example
Trace
The intersection of a plane of projection, or an original plane, with a coordinate plane.
Follow
Be next;
Mary plays best, with John and Sue following
Trace
The ground plan of a work or works.
Follow
Choose and follow; as of theories, ideas, policies, strategies or plans;
She followed the feminist movement
The candidate espouses Republican ideals
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
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
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
Imitate in behavior; take as a model;
Teenagers follow their friends in everything
Trace
Hence, to follow the trace or track of.
How all the way the prince on footpace traced.
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 copy; to imitate.
That servile path thou nobly dost decline,Of tracing word, and line by line.
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 walk over; to pass through; to traverse.
We do tracethis alley up and down.
Follow
Be the successor (of);
Carter followed Ford
Will Charles succeed to the throne?
Trace
To walk; to go; to travel.
Not wont on foot with heavy arms to trace.
Follow
Perform an accompaniment to;
The orchestra could barely follow the frequent pitch changes of the soprano
Trace
A just detectable amount;
He speaks French with a trace of an accent
Follow
Keep informed;
He kept up on his country's foreign policies
Trace
An indication that something has been present;
There wasn't a trace of evidence for the claim
A tincture of condescension
Follow
To be the product or result;
Melons come from a vine
Understanding comes from experience
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
Accept and follow the leadership or command or guidance of;
Let's follow our great helmsman!
She followed a guru for years
Trace
Drawing created by tracing
Follow
Adhere to or practice;
These people still follow the laws of their ancient religion
Trace
Either of two lines that connect a horse's harness to a wagon or other vehicle or to a whiffletree
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 visible mark (as a footprint) left by the passage of person or animal or vehicle
Follow
Keep under surveillance;
The police had been following him for weeks but they could not prove his involvement in the bombing
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
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
Make a mark or lines on a surface;
Draw a line
Trace the outline of a figure in the sand
Follow
Grasp the meaning;
Can you follow her argument?
When he lectures, I cannot follow
Trace
To go back over again;
We retraced the route we took last summer
Trace your path
Follow
Keep to;
Stick to your principles
Stick to the diet
Trace
Pursue or chase relentlessly;
The hunters traced the deer into the woods
The detectives hounded the suspect until they found the him
Follow
Follow can refer to understanding a line of thought or argument.
I couldn’t follow his logic on that argument.
Trace
Discover traces of;
She traced the circumstances of her birth
Follow
Follow can mean to observe or note.
Follow the developments in the case closely.
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
Trace can refer to a very small quantity, a remnant.
There is a trace of nut in this product.
Trace
Trace can mean to outline or delineate.
The artist traced the mountain’s silhouette with precision.
Trace
Trace denotes tracking or following a course or pathway.
Scientists can trace the migration patterns of birds.
FAQs
Can following be passive?
Yes, one can passively follow instructions or guidelines without active engagement.
Is it necessary to understand something to follow it?
No, it’s possible to follow something, like a routine, without fully understanding it.
Does trace always imply physical tracking?
No, tracing can also mean investigating intangible things like data or history.
Can tracing be done with objects or substances?
Yes, you can trace amounts of substances or the outline of objects.
Can follow mean to come after in time?
Yes, follow can denote chronological sequence, e.g., Tuesday follows Monday.
Is tracing related to drawing?
Yes, tracing in art involves copying an image by following its lines through translucent paper.
Can a trace be a small amount?
Yes, trace often refers to a tiny, barely detectable amount or remnant.
Can follow imply observation or surveillance?
Yes, follow can mean to observe or monitor someone’s actions or movements closely.
Is tracing always about finding the origin?
Not necessarily; tracing can also involve following a path or copying an outline.
Can you follow a person’s example?
Absolutely, following someone’s example means imitating their behavior or actions.
Can follow imply a consequence?
Yes, follow can denote a result or effect, e.g., rewards follow hard work.
Can tracing imply reconstructing a series of events?
Yes, tracing can involve recreating a sequence of events to understand a situation.
Can you follow a career or a path?
Yes, you can follow a career or path, meaning pursuing a specific profession or course in life.
Is tracing only related to the past?
Mostly, but tracing can also refer to real-time tracking, like tracing a moving object.
Is a trace tangible?
It can be, like a trace of lipstick, but it can also be intangible, like a trace of an emotion in a text.
About Author
Written by
Janet WhiteJanet White has been an esteemed writer and blogger for Difference Wiki. Holding a Master's degree in Science and Medical Journalism from the prestigious Boston University, she has consistently demonstrated her expertise and passion for her field. When she's not immersed in her work, Janet relishes her time exercising, delving into a good book, and cherishing moments with friends and family.
Edited by
Aimie CarlsonAimie Carlson, holding a master's degree in English literature, is a fervent English language enthusiast. She lends her writing talents to Difference Wiki, a prominent website that specializes in comparisons, offering readers insightful analyses that both captivate and inform.
