pursue
verb (used with object)
to follow in order to overtake, capture, kill, etc.; chase.
had been pursuing
-
past perfect progressiveof pursue.past perfect progressive
Used to describe an action that was ongoing continuously in the past up until another past event interrupted it.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Chemists around the world had been pursuing these compounds since at least the early 1960s.
From Science Daily ● Nov. 6, 2026
She said she found the transition easy because she went to Sacramento with an agenda to further the work she had been pursuing in South L.A.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 2, 2026
Officers had been pursuing the Passat seconds before it collided with PC Blades and PC Clough's car on the dual carriageway.
From BBC ● Sep. 10, 2026
The challenge was to balance those two forces and rely on the transplanted immune system from my brother to keep the cancer in check—refinements Storb and his colleagues had been pursuing for years.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 19, 2026
Perhaps Vaughan, blind to his friend’s machinations, had mentioned the investigation that he had been pursuing and confided the location of the hideout containing his money and evidence.
From "Killers of the Flower Moon" by David Grann
