From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishtreadtread1 /tred/ ●○○ verb (past tense trod /trɒd $ trɑːd/, past participle trodden /ˈtrɒdn $ ˈtrɑːdn/) 1 step in/on [intransitive always + adverb/preposition] British EnglishSTAND to put your foot on or in something while you are walking SYN steptread in/on Sorry, did I tread on your foot? She trod barefoot on the soft grass.2 → tread carefully/warily/cautiously etc3 crush a) [transitive] British EnglishSQUASH to press or crush something into the floor or ground with your feet SYN track American Englishtread something into/onto/over something Stop treading mud all over my clean kitchen floor! Bits of the broken vase got trodden into the carpet. b) tread grapesTA to crush grapes with your feet in order to produce juice for making wine4 → tread a path5 → tread water6 walk [intransitive, transitive always + adverb/preposition] literaryWALK to walk David trod wearily along behind the others.7 → tread the boards → tread on somebody’s toes at toe1(3)→ See Verb table
[countable, uncountable]TTC the pattern of lines on the part of a tyre that touches the road2 [countable]DH the part of a stair that you put your foot on3 [singular] literarySOUND the particular sound that someone makes when they walk I heard the back door bang, and Rex’s tread in the hall.
Examples from the Corpus
tread• Fools drive where angels fear to tread.• We trod carefully over the icy cobblestones.• Censorship was not legally defined so the opposition movement had to tread carefully.• To examine the work, viewers must decide whether to tread on a flag laid neatly on the floor before it.• We've made the effort, we've seen the airport, we've nearly got trodden on dozens of times.• This is indeed treading the fine line between glory and disaster.• Anyway the moment I trod the stage I felt completely at home.• When I get to the pool I am both delighted and relieved to see Winston treading water.tread in/on• To examine the work, viewers must decide whether to tread on a flag laid neatly on the floor before it.• We've made the effort, we've seen the airport, we've nearly got trodden on dozens of times.• He was treading on dry land.• He also seemed to indicate that, despite press reports, it would not be treading on General Magic's toes either.• I danced rigidly with Giacomo, kicking his shins and treading on his toes.• If you hadn't been a doormat you wouldn't have been trodden on - that's what doormats are for.• His bare feet could identify all the frayed patches on the long ribbon of carpet and each worn tread on the stairs.• Do not let anybody, particularly gardening writers, tread on your dreams.treadtread2 noun 1 [countable, uncountable]TTC the pattern of lines on the part of a tyre that touches the road2 [countable]DH the part of a stair that you put your foot on3 [singular] literarySOUND the particular sound that someone makes when they walk I heard the back door bang, and Rex’s tread in the hall.Examples from the Corpus
tread• It was with relief that I heard Sherlock Holmes's familiar tread upon the stairs.• As if in answer to her wish she heard a heavy, masculine tread on the uncarpeted stairs outside her door.• Stairs of dark wood curved up from the hall, and the old treads creaked under their combined weight.• The outside of the shoe was constructed from woven fabric and metal with a ribbed silicon rubber tread.• Suddenly there came the sound of the tread of the patriarch.• The tyre tread does not protrude beyond the wheel arch, but the side wall does noticeably.• His bare feet could identify all the frayed patches on the long ribbon of carpet and each worn tread on the stairs.Origin tread1 Old English tredan 