LOOK FOR

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does look for mean? 

• LOOK FOR (verb)
  The verb LOOK FOR has 2 senses:

1. try to locate or discover, or try to establish the existence of

2. be excited or anxious about

  Familiarity information: LOOK FOR used as a verb is rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• LOOK FOR (verb)

Sense 1

Meaning:

Try to locate or discover, or try to establish the existence of

Classified under:

Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging

Synonyms:

look for; search; seek

Context example:

They are searching for the missing man in the entire county

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "look for"):

finger (search for on the computer)

browse; shop (shop around; not necessarily buying)

feel (grope or feel in search of something)

grub (search about busily)

angle; fish (seek indirectly)

go after; pursue; quest after; quest for (go in search of or hunt for)

seek out (look for a specific person or thing)

scour (examine minutely)

want (hunt or look for; want for a particular reason)

gather (look for (food) in nature)

hunt (seek, search for)

leave no stone unturned (search thoroughly and exhaustively)

browse; surf (look around casually and randomly, without seeking anything in particular)

divine (search by divining, as if with a rod)

fumble; grope (feel about uncertainly or blindly)

drag; dredge (search (as the bottom of a body of water) for something valuable or lost)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s something
Somebody ----s somebody

Sentence examples:

The banks look for the check
Sam cannot look for Sue
They look for the water

Sense 2

Meaning:

Be excited or anxious about

Classified under:

Verbs of feeling

Synonyms:

anticipate; look for; look to

Hypernyms (to "look for" is one way to...):

await; expect; look; wait (look forward to the probable occurrence of)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "look for"):

apprehend; quail at (anticipate with dread or anxiety)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

 Context examples 

This observation prompted the researchers to look for flu RNA that the virus was not able to hide from the cellular pathogen sensing system.

('Significant breakthrough' in understanding the deadly nature of pandemic influenza, University of Cambridge )

To learn more about how genes might affect our blood pressure, 3 international research teams analyzed hundreds of thousands of people’s genomes to look for genetic variations associated with blood pressure regulation.

(The genetics of blood pressure, NIH)

Astronomers using Hubble didn't look for titanium oxide specifically.

(Hubble Observes Exoplanet that Snows Sunscreen, NASA)

The new test uses stem cell technology to look for markers in the blood of people who, because of diabetes or family history, are more likely to develop pancreatic cancer.

(New Test May Detect Pancreatic Cancer Early, VOA News)

Despite the challenges, Wang says that it's his favorite place to look for fossils.

("Out of Tibet" hypothesis: Cradle of evolution for cold-adapted mammals is in Tibet, NSF)

This gives the T cells marching orders to look for that retinal protein and attack it.

(In uveitis, bacteria in gut may instruct immune cells to attack the eye, NIH)

Blood tests may be done to look for signs of disease or agents that cause disease, to check for antibodies or tumor markers, or to see how well treatments are working.

(Blood test, NCI Dictionary)

These are the conditions we need to look for on exoplanets.

(Some Exoplanets May Have Greater Variety of Life than Exists on Earth, The Titi Tudorancea Bulletin)

Hidden beneath Europa's icy surface is perhaps the most promising place in our solar system beyond Earth to look for present-day environments that are suitable for life.

(NASA Issues 'Remastered' View of Jupiter's Moon Europa, NASA)

This type of observation allows scientists to look for the telltale signs of the planets' chemical constituents, such as water.

('Cotton Candy' Planet Mysteries Unravel in New Hubble Observations, NASA)