quest
Americannoun
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quests
plural
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a search or pursuit made in order to find or obtain something.
a quest for uranium mines;
a quest for knowledge.
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Classical and Medieval Legend. an adventurous expedition undertaken by a knight or knights to secure or achieve something.
the quest of the Holy Grail.
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those engaged in such an expedition.
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British Dialect. inquest.
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Obsolete. a jury of inquest.
verb (used without object)
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quests,
present (3rd person singular)
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quested,
past participle, past
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questing
present participle
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to search; seek (often followed by for orafter ).
to quest after hidden treasure.
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to go on a quest.
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Hunting. (of a dog)
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to search for game.
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to bay or give tongue in pursuit of game.
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verb (used with object)
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quests,
present (3rd person singular)
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quested,
past participle, past
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questing
present participle
noun
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the act or an instance of looking for or seeking; search
a quest for diamonds
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(in medieval romance) an expedition by a knight or company of knights to accomplish some prescribed task, such as finding the Holy Grail
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the object of a search; goal or target
my quest is the treasure of the king
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rare a collection of alms
verb
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to go in search (of)
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to go on a quest
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to search for game
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to bay when in pursuit of game
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rare to collect alms
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archaic (also tr) to go in search of (a thing); seek or pursue
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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questsimple
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questssimple
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have questedperfect
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has questedperfect
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am questingprogressive
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are questingprogressive
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is questingprogressive
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have been questingperfect progressive
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has been questingperfect progressive
Past
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questedsimple
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had questedperfect
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was questingprogressive
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were questingprogressive
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had been questingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of quest
First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English noun queste, from Old French, from Latin quaesīta, feminine past participle of quaerere “to seek”; Middle English verb derivative of the noun
Explanation
A quest is all about seeking something important, and it often involves a journey. You would travel the world in a quest for gold. You would not travel to the front of the lunchroom in a quest for tater tots. Knights in the Middle Ages were forever taking on quests––most famously to find the Holy Grail. In modern times, you can quest without ever leaving home, thanks to the Internet. A scientist might embark on a quest to find the cure for cancer. A detective might quest for the truth.
Vocabulary lists containing quest
Vocabulary from the Introduction to "Reality is Broken" by Jane McGonigal
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Freak the Mighty
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"What Is the Horror Genre?" Vocabulary from the literary criticism
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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.
See Examples For:
The outspoken designer is renowned for his frank takes on the industry - previously calling social media games such as Farmville "evil" and World of Warcraft's quest design "unethical".
From BBC ● Oct. 6, 2026
On a longtime quest to democratize opera, Koelsch invited Martínez Celaya to the Chandler for a walk-through.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 2, 2026
But its good witchery also contextualizes the quest for sanity in mad times like ours with comforting observations about occultism’s role during eras of social upheaval.
From Salon ● Oct. 2, 2026
"I never saw someone engaged in a strong moral or ethical quest," says Olivier Marre, who worked with Amodei at Princeton on a retinal analysis device.
From Barron's ● Oct. 2, 2026
“Actually, no. The book isn’t logged into any one library. According to Auntie North, every time someone finishes their quest, that kid’s name appears on the card.”
From "The Way to Rio Luna" by Zoraida Cordova
In addition to checking off my goals, I was also heavily encouraged to shop for my bird’s closet, furnish his apartment, and complete the in-app quests.
From Slate ● Sep. 6, 2026
Caleb said he had a habit of going on "strange side quests" but this was "probably the most out there of the lot".
From BBC ● Jun. 18, 2026
“I’ve long had a vision of a big open-world game where you drive for hours in a random direction, and it creates new cities with new quests and architecture styles,” Togelius said.
From MarketWatch ● May 23, 2026
If you want to avoid traffic or you’re looking for some off-site adventures during Stagecoach, check out these 14 fun desert side quests.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 22, 2026
They went on quests and explored dungeons, and they chatted.
From "A Deadly Wandering: A Mystery, a Landmark Investigation, and the Astonishing Science of Attention in the Digital Age" by Matt Richtel
But the University of Liverpool academic tells Radio 1 Newsbeat that's "possible but highly improbable", as anyone who's quested for that final, obscure sticker will know.
From BBC ● Aug. 31, 2022
As for Bimini, it’s the name of a Bahamian island chain and the supposed site of the mythic Fountain of Youth quested after by Ponce de Leon, the early 16th century Spanish explorer.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 28, 2021
A few days ago in a galaxy not so far away, an estimated 65,000 “Star Wars” fans from across the globe quested their way to the biggest convention center in the United States.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 17, 2019
Don’t call me evil—or “toxic”—because I’ve never quested after the liquid sublime.
From Slate ● Nov. 20, 2013
He quested down along the rim of the door, sinking deeper, reading its outline.
From "Ship Breaker" by Paolo Bacigalupi
There he encountered climbers questing to conquer the Seven Summits—the highest mountain peaks on each continent.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 23, 2026
A long-time proponent of independence for his Flemish-speaking region, he would be loath to relinquish the post of prime minister after years of questing for the top job.
From Barron's ● Nov. 6, 2025
The more elaborate the setup, the more active the crabs become, climbing, crawling, and exploring with their endlessly questing antennae.
From Slate ● Aug. 19, 2025
The trailer showed off a top-down real-time strategy game with elements of resource management and questing.
From BBC ● Aug. 21, 2024
He pecked at her silver cross, hopped onto her head, gazed at her with the old, curious, questing expression of bird intelligence.
From "The Birchbark House" by Louise Erdrich
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
