vestige

/ˈve-stij/

Middle English, from Middle French, from Latin vestigium footstep, footprint, track, vestige

noun

  1. a trace, mark, or visible sign left by something (such as an ancient city or a condition or practice) vanished or lost

  2. the smallest quantity or trace

  3. footprint

trace vestige track mean a perceptible sign made by something that has passed. trace may suggest any line, mark, or discernible effect. vestige applies to a tangible reminder such as a fragment or remnant of what is past and gone.