Tread — Defs

01 v. i. To set the foot; to step.

imp. Trod; p. p. Trodden; p. pr. & vb. n. Treading

1.
To set the foot; to step.
“Where'er you tread, the blushing flowers shall rise.” — Pope.

“Fools rush in where angels fear to tread.” — Pope.

“The hard stone Under our feet, on which we tread and go.” — Chaucer.
2.
To walk or go; especially, to walk with a stately or a cautious step.
“Ye that . . . stately tread, or lowly creep.” — Milton.
3.
To copulate; said of birds, esp. the males.
“One woe doth tread upon another's heel.” — Shak.

Phrases & compounds

To tread on — To trample; to set the foot on in contempt.

To tread upon the heels of — to follow close upon.

02 v. t. To step or walk on.

1.
To step or walk on.
“Forbid to tread the promised land he saw.” — Prior.

“Methought she trod the ground with greater grace.” — Dryden.
2.
To beat or press with the feet; as, to tread a path; to tread land when too light; a well-trodden path.
3.
To go through or accomplish by walking, dancing, or the like.
“They have measured many a mile, To tread a measure with you on this grass.” — Shak.
4.
To crush under the foot; to trample in contempt or hatred; to subdue.
“Through thy name will we tread them under that rise up against us.” — Ps. xliv. 5.
5.
To copulate with; to feather; to cover; -- said of the male bird.

Phrases & compounds

To tread out — to press out with the feet; to press out, as wine or wheat; as, to tread out grain with cattle or horses.

To tread the stage — to act as a stageplayer; to perform a part in a drama.

03 n. A step or stepping; pressure with the foot; a footstep; as, a nimble tread; a cautious tread.

1.
A step or stepping; pressure with the foot; a footstep; as, a nimble tread; a cautious tread.
“She is coming, my own, my sweet; Were it ever so airy a tread, My heart would hear her and beat.” — Tennyson.
2.
Manner or style of stepping; action; gait; as, the horse has a good tread.
3.
Way; track; path.[R.]
4.
The act of copulation in birds.
5.
The upper horizontal part of a step, on which the foot is placed.(Arch.)
6.
The top of the banquette, on which soldiers stand to fire over the parapet.(Fort.)
7.
The part of a wheel that bears upon the road or rail.(Mach.)
8.
The chalaza of a bird's egg; the treadle.(Biol.)
9.
A bruise or abrasion produced on the foot or ankle of a horse that interferes. See Interfere, 3.(Far.) See: Interfere