chase
1to pursue in order to seize, overtake, etc.: The police officer chased the thief.
to pursue with intent to capture or kill, as game; hunt: to chase deer.
to follow or devote one's attention to with the hope of attracting, winning, gaining, etc.: He chased her for three years before she consented to marry him.
to drive or expel by force, threat, or harassment: She chased the cat out of the room.
to follow in pursuit: to chase after someone.
to rush or hasten: We spent the weekend chasing around from one store to another.
the act of chasing; pursuit: The chase lasted a day.
an object of pursuit; something chased.
Chiefly British. a private game preserve; a tract of privately owned land reserved for, and sometimes stocked with, animals and birds to be hunted.
British. the right of keeping game or of hunting on the land of others.
a steeplechase.
the chase, the sport or occupation of hunting: the excitement of the chase.
give chase, to pursue: The hunt began and the dogs gave chase.
Idioms about chase
cut to the chase, Informal. to get to the main point.
Origin of chase
1Other words for chase
Other words from chase
- chase·a·ble, adjective
Words that may be confused with chase
- chased , chaste
Other definitions for chase (2 of 4)
a rectangular iron frame in which composed type is secured or locked for printing or platemaking.
Building Trades. a space or groove in a masonry wall or through a floor for pipes or ducts.
a groove, furrow, or trench; a lengthened hollow.
Ordnance.
the part of a gun in front of the trunnions.
the part containing the bore.
Origin of chase
2Other definitions for chase (3 of 4)
to ornament (metal) by engraving or embossing.
to cut (a screw thread), as with a chaser or machine tool.
Origin of chase
3Other definitions for Chase (4 of 4)
Mary Ellen, 1887–1973, U.S. educator, novelist, and essayist.
Sal·mon Portland [sal-muhn], /ˈsæl mən/, 1808–73, U.S. jurist and statesman: secretary of the treasury 1861–64; chief justice of the U.S. 1864–73.
Samuel, 1741–1811, U.S. jurist and leader in the American Revolution: associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court 1796–1811.
Stuart, 1888–1985, U.S. economist and writer.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use chase in a sentence
The boy's brave housecat attacks the dog and chases it away, and the video is truly amazing.
Viral Video of the Day: Cat Saves Boy From Dog Attack | The Daily Beast Video | May 15, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTZeffirelli's film was awful and creepy and over the top in all the right ways: arson, chases, death, prison, Tom Cruise.
What the New ‘Endless Love’s Fireplace Sex Scene Is Missing | Sujay Kumar | February 13, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST(Film can go there triumphantly…) Writing chases after the senses and conveys them in an altered form.
Susan Minot on Africa, Joseph Kony, and the Limits of Writing About Love | Lea Carpenter | February 10, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTIt has car chases, bank heists, naked women, and a number in the title.
‘Dhoom 3’ Review: Bollywood’s Baffling Blockbuster | Sujay Kumar | December 31, 2013 | THE DAILY BEASTIn one scene, the officer hangs onto a ladder from a helicopter as he chases the thief.
‘Dhoom 3’ Review: Bollywood’s Baffling Blockbuster | Sujay Kumar | December 31, 2013 | THE DAILY BEAST
He is a frisky dog and often chases the horses and buggies that go up and down the road in front of the house.
Seven O'Clock Stories | Robert Gordon AndersonYear chases year, decay pursues decay, / Still drops some joy from withering life away.
We saw several antelope, and had one or two good chases for them, but did not get any.
Journal of a Trip to California by the Overland Route Across the Plains in 1850-51 | E. S. (Eleazer Stillman) IngallsThe Cormorant is famous for his large appetite; he chases even big fish, of a size to choke him, you would think.
On the Seashore | R. Cadwallader SmithHer face grew shaded, as a cloud chases sunlight before it across a meadow.
Lazarre | Mary Hartwell Catherwood
British Dictionary definitions for chase (1 of 3)
/ (tʃeɪs) /
to follow or run after (a person, animal, or goal) persistently or quickly
(tr; often foll by out, away, or off) to force to run (away); drive (out)
(tr) informal to court (a member of the opposite sex) in an unsubtle manner
(tr often foll by up) informal to pursue persistently and energetically in order to obtain results, information, etc: chase up the builders and get a delivery date
(intr) informal to hurry; rush
the act of chasing; pursuit
any quarry that is pursued
British an unenclosed area of land where wild animals are preserved to be hunted
British the right to hunt a particular quarry over the land of others
the chase the act or sport of hunting
short for steeplechase
real tennis a ball that bounces twice, requiring the point to be played again
cut to the chase informal, mainly US to start talking about the important aspects of something
give chase to pursue (a person, animal, or thing) actively
Origin of chase
1Derived forms of chase
- chaseable, adjective
British Dictionary definitions for chase (2 of 3)
/ (tʃeɪs) /
printing a rectangular steel or cast-iron frame into which metal type and blocks making up pages are locked for printing or plate-making
the part of a gun barrel from the front of the trunnions to the muzzle
a groove or channel, esp one that is cut in a wall to take a pipe, cable, etc
Also: chamfer to cut a groove, furrow, or flute in (a surface, column, etc)
Origin of chase
2British Dictionary definitions for chase (3 of 3)
/ (tʃeɪs) /
Also: enchase to ornament (metal) by engraving or embossing
to form or finish (a screw thread) with a chaser
Origin of chase
3Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Other Idioms and Phrases with chase
see ambulance chaser; cut to the chase; give chase; go fly a kite (chase yourself); lead a merry chase; run (chase) after; wild goose chase.
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
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