# chase

Pronunciation: say "CHAYS" /t͡ʃeɪs/

## Verb

1. To follow a person, animal, or vehicle quickly in order to catch it.
   - Simple: To run or go after someone or something quickly to try to catch them.
   - _Police officers chase suspects who flee on foot._
   - _The cat chased a mouse under the sofa._
3. To seek to attain something; to pursue a goal or ambition with effort.
   - Simple: To try hard to get or achieve something you want.
   - _Young athletes chase records that may stand for decades._
   - _He spent years chasing a promotion that never came._
4. To run after or threaten a person or animal until they leave a place; followed by away, off, out of, or from.
   - Simple: To make a person or animal go away from a place by running after them or scaring them.
   - _Security guards chased the protesters from the lobby within minutes._
   - _Farmers set up noisy propane cannons to chase birds off the newly planted fields._
5. To persistently pursue someone as a romantic or sexual partner.
   - Simple: To keep trying to win someone as a partner for romance or sex.
   - _Some people chase partners who are clearly unavailable._
   - _Men chased her relentlessly until she changed her number._
6. To drink another beverage immediately after hard liquor, usually something milder like soda or beer.
   - Simple: To drink something milder right after a shot of strong alcohol.
   - _Bartenders often suggest patrons chase strong spirits with something sweet._
   - _She chased the harsh vodka with a glass of orange juice._
7. In cricket, to bat for victory by scoring the required number of runs in the final innings.
   - Simple: In cricket, to try to win by scoring the runs needed in the last innings.
   - _Batting second, the visitors chase a daunting fourth-innings total._
   - _India chased 280 with four wickets to spare._
10. In baseball, to swing at a pitch outside the strike zone, often one the pitcher has deliberately thrown just out of reach.
   - Simple: In baseball, to swing at a ball thrown outside the strike zone.
   - _Free swingers tend to chase balls well off the plate._
   - _She chased a curveball in the dirt to end the inning._
12. In baseball, to produce enough offense against a pitcher to force the manager to remove them from the game.
   - Simple: In baseball, to hit so well that the other team's pitcher gets taken out.
   - _The lineup chased the ace after loading the bases twice._
   - _A few quick runs can chase even a veteran starter._
14. To decorate metal by hammering a design into its front surface with punches and small tools.
   - Simple: To decorate metal by hammering patterns into its surface with small tools.
   - _Craftsmen chase the surface of the goblet with intricate scrollwork._
   - _She chased a border of leaves around the silver tray._
18. To cut a groove or channel into a surface, especially into a wall or floor to hide pipes or wiring.
   - Simple: To cut a long narrow groove into something, for example a wall to hide wires.
   - _Before plastering, the builders chased the brickwork so the cables would sit flush beneath the surface._
   - _You'll have to chase a channel into the concrete floor to run the heating pipes._
19. To get in touch with someone again and again, reminding or pushing them to deliver, pay, or do what they owe or have promised. *(colloquial, UK)*
   - Simple: To keep contacting someone to remind them to do, pay, or give what they owe or promised.
   - _Can you chase the printers and find out when the leaflets will be ready?_
   - _Our accounts team has been chasing the client for payment since March._

## Noun

2. The act of following someone or something quickly to catch it, including the hunting of animals.
   - Simple: The act of running or going after someone or something to catch it.
   - _The chase through the crowded market lasted several minutes._
   - _Viewers love a good car chase in action films._
8. A determined bid to win or reach a goal, and especially a contest in which rivals compete for a title or place.
   - Simple: A strong effort to win or get something, especially a contest with others for a title or a place.
   - _With four games left, three clubs remain in the title chase._
   - _The chase for the party's nomination has turned bitter in recent weeks._
9. A children's game in which one player runs after and tries to catch another.
   - Simple: A game where children run after each other to catch one.
   - _A game of chase broke out among the children at recess._
   - _They invented their own version of chase with new rules._
11. In cycling, one or more riders who are ahead of the peloton and trying to catch the race or stage leaders.
   - Simple: In cycling, the riders ahead of the main group trying to catch the leaders.
   - _The chase formed quickly once the gap to the leaders grew._
   - _With ten kilometers left, the chase still trailed by a minute._
13. A groove, slot, or channel cut into something, especially a hidden space in a wall or floor for pipes, wiring, or ducts.
   - Simple: A long narrow groove or space, for example inside a wall for pipes or wires.
   - _The plumber buried the supply line in a chase so no pipework would be visible._
   - _Building codes limit how deep a chase can be cut into a load-bearing wall._
15. In horse racing, a steeplechase, in which the horses jump large fences, rather than a hurdle race. *(British)*
   - Simple: In horse racing, a race where the horses jump over big fences, not small hurdles.
   - _The gelding jumped beautifully to win the three-mile chase on Saturday._
   - _After two seasons over hurdles, the trainer plans to move him up to chases this autumn._
16. An extensive rural estate set aside for hunting or shooting game. *(British)*
   - Simple: A large piece of private land in the countryside where animals are hunted.
   - _The duke's chase stretched for thousands of acres of woodland and heath._
   - _Riders gathered at dawn to hunt across the chase._
17. In jazz, a series of brief improvised solos in which several musicians take turns.
   - Simple: In jazz, a series of short solos where musicians take turns improvising.
   - _The quartet broke into a chase, each soloist answering the last._
   - _A four-bar chase let the drummer trade phrases with the pianist._

## Other meanings

- (noun) Something being pursued, such as a hunted animal or an enemy ship.
- (noun) A rectangular steel or iron frame that holds pages or columns of type locked in place for printing or plate-making.
- (verb) To cut the helical thread into a screw, bolt, or similar fastener.
- (noun) A ship's gun positioned to fire directly ahead or astern, known as either a bow chase or a stern chase.
- (noun) In real tennis, the spot where the ball bounces a second time in certain parts of the court, marked so the point can later be played off.
- (noun) The forward part of a gun barrel, lying in front of the trunnions.
- (noun) The hollow cavity within a mold, into which molten or liquid material is poured to take its shape.
- (noun) In shipbuilding, a joint that turns an overlapping plank joint into a flush one by means of a gradually deepening cut, as at the ends of clinker-built boats.

## Origin

**Meanings 1–12, 15–17, 19** — Latin captāre, a frequentative of capere, developed into Vulgar Latin *captiāre, which led to Old French chacier and Anglo-Norman chacer and then to Middle English chacen. It shares its origin with "catch" (its doublet) and is related to "capture." French chasser and Spanish cazar ("to hunt") are cognates.
**Meanings 13–14, 18** — One possible source is obsolete French chas ("groove", "enclosure"), which came from Old French and ultimately Latin capsa ("box"). It may instead be a shortened form of "enchase" or something derived from it. Doublets include "case," "cash," and "chasse."

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/chase (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).