踪迹 zōngjì tracks
tracks; trail; footprint; trace; vestige
How to remember 踪迹: 踪 footprints + 迹 trace = tracks.
Characters
How it is used
- Traces / whereabouts you follow to locate someone or something - 警方追查他的踪迹 (jǐngfāng zhuīchá tā de zōngjì) police are tracking his whereabouts.
- Often in 不见踪迹 (bújiàn zōngjì, vanished without a trace) or 消失得无影无踪.
- Focuses on clues that reveal a location, unlike 足迹 (zújì), which is footprints/the mark a life leaves behind.
Example sentences
- 他消失了，不留一丝踪迹。 Tā xiāoshī le, bùliú yīsī zōngjì.He disappeared without a trace.
- 我跟着鹿的踪迹。 Wǒ gēnzhe lù de zōngjì.I followed the deer's tracks.