痕跡|こんせきkonseki[0]heiban (flat)

1. nountrace; vestige; mark; sign; evidence
   アテネへ向むかう一いち隻せきの貨物船かもつせんが何なんの痕跡こんせきも残のこさずに地中海ちちゅうかいで沈没ちんぼつした。↗

   A cargo vessel, bound for Athens, sank in the Mediterranean without a trace.

• Synonym跡あとNeutralThe everyday native word for a trace or mark, the most common choice in speech, as in 「足跡」; 「痕跡」 is more written and stresses traces that can be examined as evidence.
• Synonym形跡けいせきNeutralSigns of whether an act took place, often in the negative as 「…した形跡はない」; it centers on evidence of an action rather than traces in general.
• Synonym跡形あとかたNeutralMostly seen in 「跡形もなく」, stressing that something has vanished completely, without even a trace left.
• Synonym残痕ざんこんWrittenA written word, rarely used, for traces or scars that remain; it stresses what has been left behind.
• Synonym証跡しょうせきWrittenTraces that serve as proof of a fact; leans toward auditing and legal contexts, as in 「証跡を残す」.
• Related傷跡きずあとNeutralA scar, physical or emotional, as in 「心の傷跡」; it centers on marks left by wounds rather than traces in general.
• Related傷きずNeutralA wound, cut or flaw; very broad in use, but it points to the damage itself rather than the trace it leaves.
• Related事跡じせきWrittenTraces of a person's deeds or achievements; a written word that leans toward historical research.
• Related創痕そうこんWrittenA written, rarely used word for scars; it leans toward medical and forensic usage.
• Related爪痕つめあとNeutralLiterally a fingernail scratch; figuratively the ravages left by disasters or war, as in 「台風の爪痕」.
• Related擦れすれNeutralA scrape or wear mark caused by rubbing, as in 「擦れ傷」; it centers on marks left by friction.
• Related痕こんNeutralThis is 「跡」 written as 「痕」; the meaning is the same, a mark left behind, while 「痕跡」 is more written and stresses traces that can be examined as evidence.

In writing, use 「痕跡」 for verifiable traces left behind, as in 「痕跡を残す」 or 「生活の痕跡」. In daily speech say 「跡」; for signs of whether an act occurred use 「形跡」; for scars use 「傷跡」, for the ravages of disasters 「爪痕」, and for vanishing without a trace 「跡形もなく」.

Usage comparisons are AI-assisted and cross-checked by multiple models; for study reference only

1. 過去かこに何なんかが起おこったことを示しめす跡あと。