pursue
/pɚˈsu/
Word Rarity
Uncommon
Frequency: Zipf frequency 4.26 in modern English
8
Scrabble Score
6
Letters
2
Syllables
5
Unique Chars
Meaning
verb
To participate in (an activity, business etc.); to practise, follow (a profession).
Transitive verb
Example Sentences
- "pursue one's dreams"
- "The wicked flee when no man purſueth: but the righteous are bolde as a lyon."
- "He now feared for his life, and believed US intelligence agents would pursue him."
- "Her rival pursued a quite different course."
- "He even stands to gain in world terms: his noisy critics strengthen his projected image of a man determined to pursue peace with Palestinians."
- "The Kedarites are depicted as herders of sheep and goats who pursued a seminomadic existence and lived scattered over a wide area of the desert region east of the land of Israel."
Etymology
From Middle English pursuen, from Anglo-Norman pursure, poursuire etc., from Latin prōsequor (though influenced by persequor). Doublet of prosecute.
Origin
Word Breakdown
- Root: *per-, pursuen, pursure, prōsequor
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /pɚˈsu/
- British English: /pəˈsjuː/