hunt

HUNT/hʌnt/

Noun pluralhunts

10 meanings of hunt

1
verbtransitive or intransitive
To look for and chase wild animals for food or sport, sometimes searching a particular area.
Like a cat creeping up on a mouse.
Some people hunt deer in the cool weeks of fall.
Wolves hunt in packs to bring down large prey.
UsageSay go hunting or hunt deer.
2
nouncountable
A time when people go out to chase and kill wild animals.
The deer hunt lasted from dawn until noon.
After a long duck hunt, they came home with nothing.
3
searchverbtransitive or intransitive
To look hard for something you want to find.
Like looking everywhere in your room for a lost toy.
I had to hunt all over the house for my keys.
She was hunting for a better deal on a used car.
UsageSay hunt for your keys.
Similarsearch, look, seek, rummage, forage
Note
4
chase downverbtransitive
To chase someone or something to catch them or drive them away.
Like a dog chasing a cat out of the yard.
The sheriff hunted down the outlaw within a week.
Soldiers hunt the rebels from one village to the next.
UsageTo hunt someone down means to search hard for them, often to catch or harm them.
Similarpursue, chase, track, trail, hound
5
nouncountable
A search for a person or thing, often a long or careful one.
The hunt for my lost keys took the whole morning.
After a long hunt, they found a house near the school.
Similarsearch, manhunt, quest, pursuit
Note

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From Old English huntian, meaning "to hunt." It goes back to an older Germanic word for hunting or capturing.

Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 2 facts

Hunt comes from Old English huntian, meaning “to hunt.” en.wiktionary.org
Old English huntian derives from an older Germanic hunting word, reconstructed as Proto-West Germanic *huntōn. en.wiktionary.org