“跟踪/追踪”可使用Trail和Tail两个词汇 注意用法区别

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当想表达，“跟在别人后面/跟踪/追踪”这个意义的时候，trail和tail，都可以表达这个意思。只是要注意。
Trail 不仅做及物动词[VN]，还可以使用[V +adv. / prep.] 这个结构。而Tail，做及物动词用法。
可以这样概括：

• Trail 可以表达“跟在别人后面/跟踪/追踪”的意思。它既可以用作 及物动词 （[VN]），也可以用作 不及物动词，配合介词或副词（如 [V + adv. / prep.]）。例如：
  
  • [VN] "He trailed the suspect."
  • [V + adv. / prep.] "The dog trailed behind its owner."
    
• Tail 也可以表达相同的意思，但通常作为 及物动词 使用，即 [VN] 结构。它的常见用法是直接跟随一个对象，而不加介词。例如：
  
  • [VN] "The detective tailed the suspect."
    

总结：两者都能表示“跟踪”，但 trail 的用法更灵活，可以加上介词或副词，表示“跟在某人后面”；而 tail 更倾向于直接跟随某个对象。

trail
[VN] to follow sb / sth by looking for signs that show you where they have been
   跟踪；追踪:
   The police trailed Dale for days.
   警方跟踪了戴尔多日。

[V +adv. / prep.] to walk slowly because you are tired or bored, especially behind sb else
   (尤指跟在他人后面)疲惫地走,没精打采地慢走,磨蹭:
   The kids trailed around after us while we shopped for clothes.
   我们在商店买衣服时,孩子们无精打采地跟在后面。

tail
[VN]
to follow sb closely, especially in order to watch where they go and what they do
   跟踪；尾随；钉梢
   A private detective had been tailing them for several weeks.
   私人侦探几个星期来一直在跟踪他们。
当tail 做名词，也有类似的意义。
on sb's 'tail    (informal) following behind sb very closely, especially in a car
   (尤指开车)钉梢,尾随

Grammar check. Are both correct?
1.The woman soon sensed a shadowy figure trailing behind her.
2.The woman soon sensed a shadowy figure tailing behind her.

Both sentences are almost correct, but "trailing" fits better with "behind her" than "tailing" does. Here’s why:

• The woman soon sensed a shadowy figure trailing behind her.
  This is correct. "Trailing behind" is a common phrase that means someone or something is following at a distance.
• The woman soon sensed a shadowy figure tailing behind her.
  This is less natural. While "tailing" can mean following someone, it's usually used without "behind." A more natural construction would be:
  "The woman soon sensed a shadowy figure tailing her."
  

In summary, sentence 1 is fine as is, while sentence 2 would be better without "behind."

"Tail" is typically used as a transitive verb, meaning it usually takes a direct object (the person or thing being followed). For example:

• "The detective tailed the suspect."
• "He noticed someone tailing him."
  

In these sentences, "tail" directly affects the object (e.g., "suspect" or "him").
In contrast, "trail" can be both transitive and intransitive, and when used intransitively (without a direct object), it's often followed by prepositions like "behind":

• "The children trailed behind their parents."
  

So in the context of your original sentences, "trail behind" works naturally as an intransitive phrase, while "tail" is more often used transitively without "behind."