Definition of: "cover one’s tracks" with explanation and origin
Definition of: cover one’s tracks with explanation and origin? Meaning of cover one’s tracks with examples in English idiom dictionary.
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Definition of: "cover one’s tracks" with explanation and origin
cover one’s tracks
cover one’s tracks
Meaning
- to keep one’s location, activities, and intentions hidden.
- to conceal previous movement indicators.
- to conceal one’s involvement, usually in a dubious way.
- to destroy evidence of presence.
Example Sentences
- The burglars were very meticulous in covering their tracks, making it difficult for law enforcement to catch them.
- Corrupt officials go to great lengths to cover their tracks so as not to tarnish their reputations.
- When primitive camping, it’s a bad idea to cover one’s tracks. If you get lost, you’ll want there to be signs of your presence.
- The purpose of using a proxy or virtual private network (VPN) is to cover one’s tracks online in real-time.
- The murderer covered his tracks by throwing the shotgun in the lake and burying his landlord’s body.
Origin
In a literal sense, “track” was first used in the late 15th century to describe footprints or marks left by a moving object or being. Though the term has developed more uses throughout time, the original meaning is still used today.
To cover one’s tracks, in a figurative sense, can be traced back to the 1870s. At a time when most roadways were still dirt and crime was modernizing, it was essential for lawbreakers and outlaws to hide their movements so as not to be caught by authorities.
The exact origin of the idiom is unknown, which also makes it homological. (To “cover one’s tracks” covered its tracks.)
The Origins of cover one’s tracks
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Related Dictionary
- English Definition & Meaning Dictionary
- English Idioms and phrases Dictionary
- Dictionnaire Français
- Dictionnaire d'expressions idiomatiques et de phrases en français
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English Idioms and phrases
An idiom is a common word or phrase with a figurative, non-literal meaning that is understood culturally and differs from what its composite words' denotations would suggest; i.e. the words together have a meaning that is different from the dictionary definitions of the individual words (although some idioms do retain their literal meanings – see the example "kick the bucket" below). By another definition, an idiom is a speech form or an expression of a given language that is peculiar to itself grammatically or cannot be understood from the individual meanings of its elements.[3] For example, an English speaker would understand the phrase "kick the bucket" to mean "to die" – and also to actually kick a bucket. Furthermore, they would understand when each meaning is being used in context.
To evoke the desired effect in the listener, idioms require a precise replication of the phrase: not even articles can be used interchangeably (e.g. "kick a bucket" only retains the literal meaning of the phrase but not the idiomatic meaning).
Idioms should not be confused with other figures of speech such as metaphors, which evoke an image by use of implicit comparisons (e.g., "the man of steel"); similes, which evoke an image by use of explicit comparisons (e.g., "faster than a speeding bullet"); or hyperbole, which exaggerates an image beyond truthfulness (e.g., "more powerful than a locomotive"). Idioms are also not to be confused with proverbs, which are simple sayings that express a truth based on common sense or practical experience.
