Library / English Dictionary

SEEK

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

Irregular inflected form: sought   

 I. (noun) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

The movement of a read/write head to a specific data track on a disk

Classified under:

Nouns denoting natural events

Hypernyms ("seek" is a kind of...):

motion; movement (a natural event that involves a change in the position or location of something)

Domain category:

computer science; computing (the branch of engineering science that studies (with the aid of computers) computable processes and structures)

 II. (verb) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

Inquire for

Example:

seek directions from a local

Classified under:

Verbs of telling, asking, ordering, singing

Hypernyms (to "seek" is one way to...):

request (inquire for (information))

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s something
Somebody ----s something from somebody

Sense 2

Meaning:

Try to locate or discover, or try to establish the existence of

Example:

They are searching for the missing man in the entire county

Synonyms:

look for; search; seek

Classified under:

Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "seek"):

browse; shop (shop around; not necessarily buying)

feel (grope or feel in search of something)

grub (search about busily)

angle; fish (seek indirectly)

go after; pursue; quest after; quest for (go in search of or hunt for)

seek out (look for a specific person or thing)

scour (examine minutely)

want (hunt or look for; want for a particular reason)

gather (look for (food) in nature)

hunt (seek, search for)

leave no stone unturned (search thoroughly and exhaustively)

browse; surf (look around casually and randomly, without seeking anything in particular)

divine (search by divining, as if with a rod)

fumble; grope (feel about uncertainly or blindly)

finger (search for on the computer)

drag; dredge (search (as the bottom of a body of water) for something valuable or lost)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s something
Somebody ----s somebody

Sentence examples:

The banks seek the check

Sam cannot seek Sue

They seek the water

Derivation:

seeking (the act of searching for something)

Sense 3

Meaning:

Go to or towards

Example:

a liquid seeks its own level

Classified under:

Verbs of walking, flying, swimming

Hypernyms (to "seek" is one way to...):

go; locomote; move; travel (change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically)

Sentence frame:

Something is ----ing PP

Sense 4

Meaning:

Try to get or reach

Example:

seek happiness

Classified under:

Verbs of buying, selling, owning

Hypernyms (to "seek" is one way to...):

desire; want (feel or have a desire for; want strongly)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "seek"):

quest (make a search (for))

bid (make a serious effort to attain something)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Derivation:

seeking (an attempt to acquire or gain something)

Sense 5

Meaning:

Make an effort or attempt

Example:

She always seeks to do good in the world

Synonyms:

assay; attempt; essay; seek; try

Classified under:

Verbs of political and social activities and events

Hypernyms (to "seek" is one way to...):

act; move (perform an action, or work out or perform (an action))

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "seek"):

pick up the gauntlet; take a dare (be dared to do something and attempt it)

fight; struggle (make a strenuous or labored effort)

give it a try; have a go (make an attempt at something)

grope (search blindly or uncertainly)

endeavor; endeavour; strive (attempt by employing effort)

give it a try; give it a whirl (try)

adventure; chance; gamble; hazard; risk; run a risk; take a chance; take chances (take a risk in the hope of a favorable outcome)

lay on the line; put on the line; risk (expose to a chance of loss or damage)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s something
Somebody ----s to INFINITIVE

Sentence example:

They seek to move

Credits

 Context examples: 

He lost no time in endeavouring to seek him out, with the hope of persuading him to begin the world again through his credit and assistance.

(Frankenstein, by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley)

Their acquaintance was exceedingly sought after.

(Persuasion, by Jane Austen)

The individual seeks to avoid the object, activity, or situation.

(Phobia, NCI Thesaurus)

With these feelings, she rather dreaded than sought for the first view of that well-known spire which would announce her within twenty miles of home.

(Northanger Abbey, by Jane Austen)

For NDAs, ANDAs, and BLAs, this represents the original indication(s) for which approval/licensing is being sought.

(Original Application, Food and Drug Administration)

A questionnaire that seeks information both on a person's level of functioning and on their need and utilization of services.

(Older Americans Resource Scale Multidimensional Functional Assessment Questionnaire, NCI Thesaurus)

If you have one, seek medical attention.

(Dislocations, NIH)

The date of the heart failure that lead the patient to seek medical attention.

(Heart Failure Prompting Medical Attention Event, NCI Thesaurus)

Cancer immunotherapies harness the potential of the immune system to seek and destroy cancers.

(Boosting Immunotherapy Against Brain Cancer, NIH)

On the medical front, if your doctor feels a particular procedure or surgery is necessary, seek a second opinion and schedule the operation.

(AstrologyZone.com, by Susan Miller)