# seek

Pronunciation: say "SEEK" /siːk/

## Verb

1. To strive to acquire or gain something; to aim at a particular goal.
   - Simple: To work hard to get something you want, like a goal or a prize.
   - _The candidates seek the support of undecided voters._
   - _She left her hometown to seek a better life abroad._
2. To try to find someone or something by looking or searching, including trying to find or reach a place of safety such as shelter or refuge.
   - Simple: To look for someone or something, or to try to find a safe place to go.
   - _Investigators seek any witnesses who saw the accident._
   - _Rescue teams spent the night seeking the missing hikers along the mountain trails._
3. To attempt or endeavor to do something.
   - Simple: To make an effort or try to do something.
   - _The new policy seeks to reduce traffic in the city center._
   - _Scientists seek to explain how memories form._
4. To ask for or request something, such as help, advice, or approval.
   - Simple: To ask someone for something you need, like help or advice.
   - _The committee will seek input from local residents._
   - _Defendants often seek a lawyer's guidance before trial._
5. To move directly to a specific position within a data stream rather than reading through it in order.
   - Simple: To move to a certain spot in a file or recording, like skipping ahead.
   - _The media player can seek to any timestamp almost instantly._
   - _Disk heads seek across the platter to locate the requested data._

## Verb

6. To go, move, or travel in a particular direction. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: To go or travel in a certain direction.

## Other meanings

- (noun) The operation of moving directly to a particular position within a data stream.

## Origin

From Middle English seken, from Old English sēċan, from Proto-West Germanic *sōkijan and Proto-Germanic *sōkijaną ("to seek"), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *seh₂g- ("to seek out"). It is related to Dutch zoeken, German suchen, and Icelandic sækja, and the hard /k/ in modern English comes from an Old English form and was perhaps reinforced by Old Norse sǿkja.

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