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• chase
  chase

  verb (used with object)

  to pursue in order to seize, overtake, etc..
• Chase
  Chase

  noun

  Mary Ellen, 1887–1973, U.S. educator, novelist, and essayist.

chase

¹ American  

[cheys] / tʃeɪs /

verb (used with object)

chased, chasing

1. to pursue in order to seize, overtake, etc..

   The police officer chased the thief.

2. to pursue with intent to capture or kill, as game; hunt.

   to chase deer.

3. 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.

4. to drive or expel by force, threat, or harassment.

   She chased the cat out of the room.

   Synonyms:

   scatter, rout, oust

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verb (used without object)

chased, chasing

1. to follow in pursuit.

   to chase after someone.

2. to rush or hasten.

   We spent the weekend chasing around from one store to another.

noun

1. the act of chasing; pursuit.

   The chase lasted a day.

   Synonyms:

   quest, hunt

2. an object of pursuit; something chased.

3. Chiefly British. a private game preserve; a tract of privately owned land reserved for, and sometimes stocked with, animals and birds to be hunted.

4. British. the right of keeping game or of hunting on the land of others.

5. a steeplechase.

6. the chase, the sport or occupation of hunting.

   the excitement of the chase.

verb phrase

1. give chase to pursue.

   The hunt began and the dogs gave chase.

idioms

1. cut to the chase, to get to the main point.

chase ² American  

[cheys] / tʃeɪs /

noun

1. a rectangular iron frame in which composed type is secured or locked for printing or platemaking.

2. Building Trades. a space or groove in a masonry wall or through a floor for pipes or ducts.

3. a groove, furrow, or trench; a lengthened hollow.

4. Ordnance.

   1. the part of a gun in front of the trunnions.

   2. the part containing the bore.

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chase ³ American  

[cheys] / tʃeɪs /

verb (used with object)

chased, chasing

1. to ornament (metal) by engraving or embossing.

2. to cut (a screw thread), as with a chaser or machine tool.

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Chase ⁴ American  

[cheys] / tʃeɪs /

noun

1. Mary Ellen, 1887–1973, U.S. educator, novelist, and essayist.

2. Salmon Portland 1808–73, U.S. jurist and statesman: secretary of the treasury 1861–64; chief justice of the U.S. 1864–73.

3. Samuel, 1741–1811, U.S. jurist and leader in the American Revolution: associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court 1796–1811.

4. Stuart, 1888–1985, U.S. economist and writer.

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chase ¹ British  

/ tʃeɪs /

verb

1. to follow or run after (a person, animal, or goal) persistently or quickly

2. (tr; often foll by out, away, or off) to force to run (away); drive (out)

3. informal (tr) to court (a member of the opposite sex) in an unsubtle manner

4. informal to pursue persistently and energetically in order to obtain results, information, etc

   chase up the builders and get a delivery date

5. informal (intr) to hurry; rush

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noun

1. the act of chasing; pursuit

2. any quarry that is pursued

3. an unenclosed area of land where wild animals are preserved to be hunted

4. the right to hunt a particular quarry over the land of others

5. the act or sport of hunting

6. short for steeplechase

7. real tennis a ball that bounces twice, requiring the point to be played again

8. informal to start talking about the important aspects of something

9. to pursue (a person, animal, or thing) actively

chase ² British  

/ tʃeɪs /

noun

1. printing a rectangular steel or cast-iron frame into which metal type and blocks making up pages are locked for printing or plate-making

2. the part of a gun barrel from the front of the trunnions to the muzzle

3. a groove or channel, esp one that is cut in a wall to take a pipe, cable, etc

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verb

1. Also: chamfer.  to cut a groove, furrow, or flute in (a surface, column, etc)

chase ³ British  

/ tʃeɪs /

verb

1. Also: enchase.  to ornament (metal) by engraving or embossing

2. to form or finish (a screw thread) with a chaser

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chase More Idioms  

1. 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.

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Other Word Forms

• chaseable
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of chase¹

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English chacen, chacien, from Middle French chasser “to hunt,” Old French chacier, from unattested Vulgar Latin captiāre; see catch

Origin of chase²

First recorded in 1570–80; from Middle French chas, chasse, from Late Latin capsus (masculine), capsum (neuter) “fully or partly enclosed space,” variant of capsa case ²

Origin of chase³

First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English chased (past participle); shortened variant of enchase

Explanation

To chase is to follow or go after someone or something you want. This activity is called a chase. Dogs chase cats, cats chase mice, and mice are in big trouble. The word chase tried to run away from the Old French word chacier for "to hunt or strive for,” but we caught it. Any time you’re trying to get something that’s trying to get away from you, you chase it. Police officers chase criminals, and kids playing tag chase each other all over the yard. You can also chase things that aren't physical, like a dream or a goal. This activity itself is called a chase.

Example Sentences

And two of the major chase scenes were designed so that what starts off as righteous somehow tilts toward being unjust.

From Los Angeles Times • May 17, 2026

Passers-by gave chase and managed to detain the man, in his 30s, and hand him over to police.

From BBC • May 16, 2026

Holed up in the Senate after Monday’s chase, Dela Rosa on Wednesday afternoon posted a video saying that his arrest was imminent and appealing to supporters to protect him.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 14, 2026

I do know that there is a dinosaur giving chase.

From Los Angeles Times • May 14, 2026

The twelve-day chase for Abraham Lincoln’s assassin was over.

From "Chasing Lincoln's Killer" by James L. Swanson

Related Words

• drive
• drive away
• expel
• follow
• go after
• hound
• hunt
• run down
• rush
• tear
• track
• trail