Its the past tense for tread. tread- to walk in a specific way
One I have heard at school is that when the people in front of you down the narrow hallway are walking too slow is, "You walk slower than a herd of elephants stamping through peanut butter."
A prime qualification for a career in journalism,is a good understanding of the written word,in that language.
<span>The ability to use a dictionary would help too,I'm guessing.</span>