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chase

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noun

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as in prey
an animal that is hunted or killed the gazelle is a favorite chase of lions

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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Synonym Chooser

How is the word chase distinct from other similar verbs?

Some common synonyms of chase are follow, pursue, and trail. While all these words mean "to go after or on the track of something or someone," chase implies going swiftly after and trying to overtake something fleeing or running.

a dog chasing a cat

When could follow be used to replace chase?

The words follow and chase are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, follow puts less emphasis upon speed or intent to overtake.

friends followed me home in their car

When is it sensible to use pursue instead of chase?

While the synonyms pursue and chase are close in meaning, pursue suggests a continuing effort to overtake, reach, or attain.

pursued the criminal through narrow streets

When can trail be used instead of chase?

The synonyms trail and chase are sometimes interchangeable, but trail may stress a following of tracks or traces rather than a visible object.

trail deer
trailed a suspect across the country

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of chase
Verb
Again, don’t run: Bears will chase you, just like a dog would. Mike Stunson july 14, Kansas City Star, 14 July 2025 Cops chased 2,278 fleeing vehicles throughout the five boroughs last year. John Annese, New York Daily News, 13 July 2025
Noun
The suspect took off running into a nearby soybean field, but the homeowners’ 12-year-old daughter gave chase, deputies said. Olivia Lloyd, Charlotte Observer, 22 July 2025 Officers engaged in chases between 800 and about 1,000 times a year over the last seven years, according to a city report in 2024. David Clarey, jsonline.com, 21 July 2025 See All Example Sentences for chase
Recent Examples of Synonyms for chase
Verb
  • Among the line-up for this year’s speakers is also director-producer duo Ben Wheatley and Andy Starke (Kill List, Bulk, Sightseers) as well as Andrea Arnold, best known for her 2024 Cannes outing Bird.
    Lily Ford, HollywoodReporter, 18 July 2025
  • In March, 2008, the Post published a front-page story on Eliot Spitzer, then the governor of New York, who—after cracking down on prostitution rings while serving as the state’s attorney general, from 1999 to 2006—was outed as having patronized an escort service.
    The New Yorker, New Yorker, 14 July 2025
Verb
  • Rather than pursuing general-purpose models that compete with ChatGPT, Switzerland aims to develop large language models for specific applications in fields such as science, education, healthcare, robotics and climate studies.
    Cornelia C. Walther, Forbes.com, 14 July 2025
  • Together, they’re pursued by Magneto's (Ian McKellen) Brotherhood of Mutants and eventually rescued by Xavier (Patrick Stewart) and the X-Men.
    EW.com, EW.com, 14 July 2025
Verb
  • In one of his final public acts, Osbourne designed and signed limited-edition t-shirts to raise funds for the campaign, urging the UK government to ban the import of hunting trophies from endangered species.
    Amanda Castro Gabe Whisnant Anna Commander Shane Croucher, MSNBC Newsweek, 22 July 2025
  • Hakimi’s protagonist straddles the thin line between reality and fantasy, between cultures and languages, between hunting and being hunted.
    Gabrielle Bellot, Literary Hub, 22 July 2025
Verb
  • Even as Russia races to perfect a nuclear-armed spacecraft, its space weapons designers are likely also preparing to launch a stealth alternative to similarly threaten constellations of Western satellites speeding around the planet.
    Kevin Holden Platt, Forbes.com, 23 July 2025
  • Max Verstappen has raced alongside three different teammates since the 2024 Dutch Grand Prix, namely Sergio Perez, Liam Lawson, and now Yuki Tsunoda.
    Saajan Jogia, MSNBC Newsweek, 23 July 2025
Noun
  • Several tyrannosaur species often lived side by side, each focused on different prey.
    Riley Black, Smithsonian Magazine, 22 July 2025
  • The Yautja hunter Dek is an outcast from his tribe who hunts a seemingly unkillable prey, aided by the android Thia.
    Michileen Martin, MSNBC Newsweek, 21 July 2025
Noun
  • Shifting To Three Words Maybe the two-word sphere is limited and not conducive to our pursuit.
    Lance Eliot, Forbes.com, 28 July 2025
  • Space was once a realm of cooperation, beyond commercial interests and military pursuits.
    Franklin Foer, The Atlantic, 28 July 2025
Verb
  • The felony charges were dismissed with prejudice, meaning they can't be refiled.
    Quinlan Bentley, The Courier-Journal, 25 July 2025
  • While rumors suggested that the two met off the coast in their yachts, Wolff has dismissed the report.
    Saajan Jogia, MSNBC Newsweek, 24 July 2025
Verb
  • Watching the way the media tracked Collins from his departure from Wembley to his arrival in Philadelphia was inadvertently comical at the time and remains so.
    David Browne, Rolling Stone, 22 July 2025
  • According to The Next, which tracks injuries in the league, there have been more than 140 injuries so far this season.
    Michael Marot, Chicago Tribune, 22 July 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Chase.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/chase. Accessed 4 Aug. 2025.

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