track down

track down

To search for or pursue someone or something until located or captured. A noun or pronoun can be used between "track" and "down." I've been trying to track down people from my graduating class for our high school reunion. The police tracked down the fugitive to an abandoned warehouse on the outskirts of town. My son really wants this particular toy, so I was wondering if you could help me track it down.
See also: down, track
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms.

track someone or something down

to search out where someone or something is. I don't know where Anne is. I'll try to track her down. I'll track down Anne for you.
See also: down, track
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs.

track down

Follow successfully, locate, as in I've been trying to track down that book but haven't had any luck. This term alludes to the literal use of track, "follow the footsteps of." [Second half of 1800s]
See also: down, track
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.

track down

v.
To pursue someone or something until found or captured: I tracked down the book I was looking for. The fugitives were missing for a month before the police tracked them down.
See also: down, track
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Phrasal Verbs.
See also:
  • track into some place
  • keep a tab on (someone or something)
  • keep tab
  • keep tabs on
  • keep tabs on (someone or something)
  • keep tabs on somebody/something
  • keep tabs on someone/something
  • keep close tabs on (someone or something)
  • inside track
  • the inside track
References in periodicals archive
They include new information on how to track down suspects through social networking sites, where wanted people may reveal valuable clues.
Facebook training for police
The officers attempt to track down the culprits behind a vicious happy-slapping attack, all-the while struggling to come to terms with their own loss.
Thursday: Pick of the day
A software system intended to track down fraudsters has been installed by Econet Wireless, a communications company in Zimbabwe.
Econet Wireless installs system to identify fraudsters
Half the guys were off to track down Mike Carroll; the other half started making calls to locate the Durham County Courthouse.
Let's start a war: Darkstar: an underdog story
If for some reason you'd rather not download and install an add-in, there are several ways to track down links.
Links in a blink: Excel data can collaborate with data in other workbooks
Lillian Wade, nee Ellis, of Cheshire, is looking to track down members of her family, who she believes may still be in the Loughborough area.
Finding a family
We also had to track down the journalists who have been covering this case for more than three years.
Late-breaking decision: getting the word out about the InnerChange ruling
But after learning of the ring's value from a local jeweler, they decided to track down the previous owners of their home, Bill and Marlene Kiraly.
Firefighter and wife "rescue" ring
Author Peter Blecha is an obsessive music collector and former senior curator of the Experience Music Project: he's spent his lifetime haunting used record shops and antique stores to track down rarities and instruments played by rock's greatest icon, and here provides a lively blend of music history and first- person adventure in the search for elusive music memorabilia.
Rock and Roll Archaeologist
We need permission from publishers, journals, professors, and we need to track down the rights and the authors" to print materials for course packs, Archer says.
Printing detail: custom publishing can help cut expenses, attract desirable students, and distribute timely information. Here's how schools are getting the job done
Now the Beeb is desperate to track down the classic tapes after the success of the new series of Dr Who, starring Christopher Eccleston.
DOCTOR WHERE?
Islamic Jihad terrorists Saturday executed an 18-year-old youth who helped Israel track down members of the gang.
Terrorists Kill Teenage Informant
Through such research, they were able to find not only census and city directory listings, but to track down Wilson's death record.
Harriet E. Wilson. Our Nig; or, Sketches from the Life of a Free Black
They can also track down commercial manuals for many cleaners when no Army pub is available.
Don't get steamed
With the goal of developing more-sensitive screens for detecting cancer, scientists have now used quantum dots to track down and light up cancer cells in mice.
Quantum dots light up cancer cells in mice