Tread Definition

trĕd
treading, treads, trod, trodden
verb
treading, treads, trod, trodden
To walk on, in, along, across, over, etc.
Webster's New World
To press or beat with the feet so as to crush or injure; trample.
Webster's New World
To oppress or subdue, as if by stepping on.
Webster's New World
To do or follow by walking, dancing, etc.
Treading the measures briskly.
Webster's New World
To form by walking or trampling.
Tread a path.
American Heritage
noun
treads
The act, manner, or sound of treading.
Webster's New World
An instance of treading; a step.
American Heritage
A mark made by treading, as in snow.
American Heritage
The thick outer layer of an automotive tire, containing grooves for added traction.
Webster's New World
The thickness of this layer, as measured by the depth of the grooves.
Webster's New World
idiom
tread the boards
  • To act on the stage:
American Heritage
tread water
  • To keep the head above water while in an upright position by pumping the legs.
  • To expend effort but make little or no progress to achievement of a goal or an end.
American Heritage
tread the boards
  • to act in plays on the stage
Webster's New World
tread water
  • to keep the head above water and the body upright without propelling oneself forward, by moving the legs and arms back and forth
  • to make no progress
Webster's New World

Other Word Forms of Tread

Noun

Singular:
tread
Plural:
treads

Idioms, Phrasal Verbs Related to Tread

Origin of Tread

  • From Middle English treden, from Old English tredan (“to tread, step on, trample, traverse, pass over, enter upon, roam through "), from Proto-Germanic *tredanÄ…, *trudanÄ…. Cognate with West Frisian trêdzje, Low German treden, Dutch treden, German treten, Danish træde, Swedish träda, Norwegian treda.

    From Wiktionary

  • Middle English treden from Old English tredan

    From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition

  • From the above verb.

    From Wiktionary

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