Pursue vs. Follow

Pursueverb

To follow with harmful intent; to try to harm, to persecute, torment.

Followverb

(transitive) To go after; to pursue; to move behind in the same path or direction.

‘Follow that car!’;

Pursueverb

(transitive) To follow urgently, originally with intent to capture or harm; to chase.

Followverb

(transitive) To go or come after in a sequence.

‘B follows A in the alphabet.’; ‘We both ordered the soup, with roast beef to follow.’;

Pursueverb

(transitive) To follow, travel down (a particular way, course of action etc.).

‘Her rival pursued a quite different course.’;

Followverb

(transitive) To carry out (orders, instructions, etc.).

‘Follow these instructions to the letter.’;

Pursueverb

(transitive) To aim for, go after (a specified objective, situation etc.).

Followverb

(transitive) To live one's life according to (religion, teachings, etc).

Pursueverb

(transitive) To participate in (an activity, business etc.); to practise, follow (a profession).

Followverb

(transitive) To understand, to pay attention to.

‘Do you follow me?’;

Pursueverb

To follow with a view to overtake; to follow eagerly, or with haste; to chase; as, to pursue a hare.

‘We happiness pursue; we fly from pain.’; ‘The happiness of men lies in purswing,Not in possessing.’;

Followverb

(transitive) To watch, to keep track of (reports of) some event or person.

‘I followed the incumbent throughout the election.’; ‘My friends don't regularly follow the news.’;

Pursueverb

To seek; to use or adopt measures to obtain; as, to pursue a remedy at law.

‘The fame of ancient matrons you pursue.’;

Followverb

(transitive) To be a logical consequence of.

‘It follows that if two numbers are not equal then one is larger than the other.’;

Pursueverb

To proceed along, with a view to some and or object; to follow; to go in; as, Captain Cook pursued a new route; the administration pursued a wise course.

Followverb

(transitive) To walk in, as a road or course; to attend upon closely, as a profession or calling.

Pursueverb

To prosecute; to be engaged in; to continue.

Follownoun

In billiards and similar games, a stroke causing a ball to follow another ball after hitting it.

‘a follow shot’;

Pursueverb

To follow as an example; to imitate.

Follownoun

(internet) The act of following another user's online activity.

Pursueverb

To follow with enmity; to persecute; to call to account.

‘The servant is not greater than his lord. If they have pursued me, they shall pursue you also.’;

Followverb

To go or come after; to move behind in the same path or direction; hence, to go with (a leader, guide, etc.); to accompany; to attend.

‘It waves me forth again; I'll follow it.’;

Pursueverb

To go in pursuit; to follow.

‘The wicked flee when no man pursueth.’; ‘Men hotly pursued after the objects of their ambition.’;

Followverb

To endeavor to overtake; to go in pursuit of; to chase; to pursue; to prosecute.

‘I will harden the hearts of the Egyptians, and they shall follow them.’;

Pursueverb

To go on; to proceed, especially in argument or discourse; to continue.

‘I have, pursues Carneades, wondered chemists should not consider.’;

Followverb

To accept as authority; to adopt the opinions of; to obey; to yield to; to take as a rule of action; as, to follow good advice.

‘Approve the best, and follow what I approve’; ‘Follow peace with all men.’; ‘It is most agreeable to some men to follow their reason; and to others to follow their appetites.’;

Pursueverb

To follow a matter judicially, as a complaining party; to act as a prosecutor.

Followverb

To copy after; to take as an example.

‘We had rather follow the perfections of them whom we like not, than in defects resemble them whom we love.’;

Pursueverb

carry out or participate in an activity; be involved in;

‘She pursued many activities’; ‘They engaged in a discussion’;

Followverb

To succeed in order of time, rank, or office.

Pursueverb

follow in or as if in pursuit;

‘The police car pursued the suspected attacker’; ‘Her bad deed followed her and haunted her dreams all her life’;

Followverb

To result from, as an effect from a cause, or an inference from a premise.

Pursueverb

go in search of or hunt for;

‘pursue a hobby’;

Followverb

To watch, as a receding object; to keep the eyes fixed upon while in motion; to keep the mind upon while in progress, as a speech, musical performance, etc.; also, to keep up with; to understand the meaning, connection, or force of, as of a course of thought or argument.

‘He followed with his eyes the flitting shade.’;

Pursueverb

carry further or advance;

‘Can you act on this matter soon?’;

Followverb

To walk in, as a road or course; to attend upon closely, as a profession or calling.

‘O, had I but followed the arts!’; ‘O Antony! I have followed thee to this.’;

Pursueverb

follow or chase (someone or something)

‘a heavily indebted businessman was being pursued by creditors’; ‘the officer pursued the van’;

Followverb

To go or come after; - used in the various senses of the transitive verb: To pursue; to attend; to accompany; to be a result; to imitate.

Pursueverb

persistently seek to form a sexual relationship with (someone)

‘Sophie was being pursued by a number of men’;

Follownoun

The art or process of following; specif., in some games, as billiards, a stroke causing a ball to follow another ball after hitting it. Also used adjectively; as, follow shot.

Pursueverb

seek to attain or accomplish (a goal) over a long period

‘should people pursue their own happiness at the expense of others?’;

Followverb

to travel behind, go after, come after;

‘The ducklings followed their mother around the pond’; ‘Please follow the guide through the museum’;

Pursueverb

(of something unpleasant) persistently afflict (someone)

‘mercy lasts as long as sin pursues man’;

Followverb

be later in time;

‘Tuesday always follows Monday’;

Pursueverb

continue or proceed along (a path or route)

‘the road pursued a straight course over the scrubland’;

Followverb

come as a logical consequence; follow logically;

‘It follows that your assertion is false’; ‘the theorem falls out nicely’;

Pursueverb

engage in (an activity or course of action)

‘the council decided not to pursue an appeal’; ‘Andrew was determined to pursue a computer career’;

Followverb

travel along a certain course;

‘follow the road’; ‘follow the trail’;

Pursueverb

continue to investigate or explore (an idea or argument)

‘we shall not pursue the matter any further’;

Followverb

act in accordance with someone's rules, commands, or wishes;

‘He complied with my instructions’; ‘You must comply or else!’; ‘Follow these simple rules’; ‘abide by the rules’;

Followverb

come after in time, as a result;

‘A terrible tsunami followed the earthquake’;

Followverb

behave in accordance or in agreement with;

‘Follow a pattern’; ‘Follow my example’;

Followverb

be next;

‘Mary plays best, with John and Sue following’;

Followverb

choose and follow; as of theories, ideas, policies, strategies or plans;

‘She followed the feminist movement’; ‘The candidate espouses Republican ideals’;

Followverb

to bring something about at a later time than;

‘She followed dinner with a brandy’; ‘He followed his lecture with a question and answer period’;

Followverb

imitate in behavior; take as a model;

‘Teenagers follow their friends in everything’;

Followverb

follow, discover, or ascertain the course of development of something;

‘We must follow closely the economic development is Cuba’; ‘trace the student's progress’;

Followverb

follow with the eyes or the mind;

‘Keep an eye on the baby, please!’; ‘The world is watching Sarajevo’; ‘She followed the men with the binoculars’;

Followverb

be the successor (of);

‘Carter followed Ford’; ‘Will Charles succeed to the throne?’;

Followverb

perform an accompaniment to;

‘The orchestra could barely follow the frequent pitch changes of the soprano’;

Followverb

keep informed;

‘He kept up on his country's foreign policies’;

Followverb

to be the product or result;

‘Melons come from a vine’; ‘Understanding comes from experience’;

Followverb

accept and follow the leadership or command or guidance of;

‘Let's follow our great helmsman!’; ‘She followed a guru for years’;

Followverb

adhere to or practice;

‘These people still follow the laws of their ancient religion’;

Followverb

work in a specific place, with a specific subject, or in a specific function;

‘He is a herpetologist’; ‘She is our resident philosopher’;

Followverb

keep under surveillance;

‘The police had been following him for weeks but they could not prove his involvement in the bombing’;

Followverb

follow in or as if in pursuit;

‘The police car pursued the suspected attacker’; ‘Her bad deed followed her and haunted her dreams all her life’;

Followverb

grasp the meaning;

‘Can you follow her argument?’; ‘When he lectures, I cannot follow’;

Followverb

keep to;

‘Stick to your principles’; ‘stick to the diet’;

Followverb

go or come after (a person or thing proceeding ahead); move or travel behind

‘the men followed in another car’; ‘she went back into the house, and Ben followed her’;

Followverb

go after (someone) in order to observe or monitor them

‘the KGB man followed her everywhere’;

Followverb

strive after; aim at

‘I follow fame’;

Followverb

go along (a route or path).

Followverb

(of a route or path) go in the same direction as or parallel to (another)

‘the road follows the track of the railway line’;

Followverb

trace the movement or direction of

‘she followed his gaze, peering into the gloom’;

Followverb

come after in time or order

‘the rates are as follows’; ‘the six years that followed his restoration’;

Followverb

happen after (something else) as a consequence

‘raucous laughter followed the ribald remark’; ‘retribution soon followed’; ‘the announcement followed on from the collapse of the merchant bank’;

Followverb

be a logical consequence of something

‘it thus follows from this equation that the value must be negative’;

Followverb

(of a person) do something after (something else)

‘they follow their March show with four UK dates next month’;

Followverb

have (a dish or course) after another or others during a meal

‘turkey was followed by dessert’;

Followverb

act according to (an instruction or precept)

‘he has difficulty in following written instructions’;

Followverb

conform to

‘the film faithfully follows Shakespeare's plot’;

Followverb

act according to the lead or example of (someone)

‘he follows Aristotle in believing this’;

Followverb

treat as a teacher or guide

‘those who seek to follow Jesus Christ’;

Followverb

pay close attention to

‘I've been following this discussion closely’;

Followverb

take an active interest in or be a supporter of

‘supporters who have followed the club through thick and thin’;

Followverb

(of a book, film, programme, etc.) be concerned with or trace the development of

‘the book follows the life and career of Henry Clay’;

Followverb

track (a person, group, or organization) by subscribing to their account on a social media website or application

‘I don't follow many celebrities on Twitter any more’; ‘if you've been following me on Facebook recently you may have seen a bunch of different posts about surgery and back trouble’;

Followverb

understand the meaning or tendency of (a speaker or argument)

‘I still don't follow you’;

Followverb

practise (a trade or profession).

Followverb

undertake or carry out (a course of action or study)

‘she followed a strict diet’;