spoor
/spʊə(r)/ (bre, ipa) · /spʊr/ (ame, ipa) · /ˈspu̇r ˈspȯr/ (ame, mw)
spoor — noun
1. the set of clues a wild creature leaves on its path — footprints, crushed plants
the set of clues a wild creature leaves on its path — footprints, crushed plants, droppings, and smell — that hunters and guides read to find it
The Kalahari guide knelt to read the fresh leopard spoor in the soft sand.
collocation: read / follow the spoor
Heavy rain had washed away the lion spoor by the time the rangers arrived.
subject is a natural force erasing the spoor
Maeve photographed the elephant spoor pressed deep into the riverbank mud.
The trackers followed the antelope spoor for hours across the dry plain.
A faint spoor of musk hung in the air where the buffalo had passed.
文法句型
follow the spoor of [animal]
用法筆記
Almost always uncountable and tied to wild, large game (lions, elephants, antelope); rarely used of pets or people. Common in safari, hunting, and conservation contexts.
常見錯誤
spoor — verb
- spoorpresent simple I / you / we / they
- spoors3rd person singular
- spooring-ing form
- spooredpast simple
1. to find and chase a wild animal by following the prints and smell it has left on
to find and chase a wild animal by following the prints and smell it has left on the ground
The San hunters spoored the wounded eland across the desert until nightfall.
transitive: spoor + [animal]
Andrés learned to spoor warthogs by reading the marks beside the watering hole.
collocation: spoor + [animal]
The two guides spoored a leopard for three days through the thick bush.
Nkechi spoored the lost goats along the muddy path back to the village.
Rangers spoored the rhino at dawn to check that the calf was still safe.
文法句型
spoor + [animal]
用法筆記
Always takes a direct object (the animal being followed) and is far rarer than the noun. Most common in hunting and game-tracking writing, often in the past tense.