PURSUIT

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does pursuit mean? 

• PURSUIT (noun)
  The noun PURSUIT has 4 senses:

1. the act of pursuing in an effort to overtake or capture

2. a search for an alternative that meets cognitive criteria

3. an auxiliary activity

4. a diversion that occupies one's time and thoughts (usually pleasantly)

  Familiarity information: PURSUIT used as a noun is uncommon.

 Dictionary entry details 

• PURSUIT (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

The act of pursuing in an effort to overtake or capture

Classified under:

Nouns denoting acts or actions

Synonyms:

chase; following; pursual; pursuit

Context example:

the culprit started to run and the cop took off in pursuit

Hypernyms ("pursuit" is a kind of...):

motion; move; movement (the act of changing location from one place to another)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "pursuit"):

tracking; trailing (the pursuit (of a person or animal) by following tracks or marks they left behind)

shadowing; tailing (the act of following someone secretly)

stalk; stalking (the act of following prey stealthily)

Derivation:

pursue (follow in or as if in pursuit)

Sense 2

Meaning:

A search for an alternative that meets cognitive criteria

Classified under:

Nouns denoting cognitive processes and contents

Synonyms:

pursuance; pursuit; quest

Context example:

a quest for wealth

Hypernyms ("pursuit" is a kind of...):

search (the examination of alternative hypotheses)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "pursuit"):

wild-goose chase (the fruitless pursuit of something unattainable)

Derivation:

pursue (go in search of or hunt for)

Sense 3

Meaning:

An auxiliary activity

Classified under:

Nouns denoting acts or actions

Synonyms:

avocation; by-line; hobby; pursuit; sideline; spare-time activity

Hypernyms ("pursuit" is a kind of...):

interest; pastime; pursuit (a diversion that occupies one's time and thoughts (usually pleasantly))

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "pursuit"):

spelaeology; speleology (the pastime of exploring caves)

Sense 4

Meaning:

A diversion that occupies one's time and thoughts (usually pleasantly)

Classified under:

Nouns denoting acts or actions

Synonyms:

interest; pastime; pursuit

Context example:

they criticized the boy for his limited pursuits

Hypernyms ("pursuit" is a kind of...):

diversion; recreation (an activity that diverts or amuses or stimulates)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "pursuit"):

avocation; by-line; hobby; pursuit; sideline; spare-time activity (an auxiliary activity)

Derivation:

pursue (carry out or participate in an activity; be involved in)

 Context examples 

These findings open avenues for the pursuit of new strategies to screen for, prevent, and treat glaucoma.

(Glaucoma-related genes revealed, NIH)

He began to suspect him of some double dealing in his pursuit of Emma.

(Emma, by Jane Austen)

Still, it is a great pursuit.

(David Copperfield, by Charles Dickens)

I gave him pretty nearly the same account of my former pursuits as I had given to his fellow professor.

(Frankenstein, by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley)

In that case the others would have followed in pursuit.

(The Lost World, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

Certainly, my associates and pursuits shall be other than they have been.

(Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Brontë)

Here you are in pursuit only of amusement all day long.

(Northanger Abbey, by Jane Austen)

Flying-fish are beginning to be seen, and during the night the watch above scrambles over the deck in pursuit of those that fall aboard.

(The Sea-Wolf, by Jack London)

Then she fluttered away, running, trailing the broken wing, with him in pursuit.

(Love of Life and Other Stories, by Jack London)

He considered his disposition as of the sort which must suffer heavily, uniting very strong feelings with quiet, serious, and retiring manners, and a decided taste for reading, and sedentary pursuits.

(Persuasion, by Jane Austen)