chase 1
(chās)v. chased, chas·ing, chas·es
v.tr.1. To follow rapidly in order to catch or overtake; pursue: chased the thief.
2. To follow (game) in order to capture or kill; hunt: chase foxes.
3. To seek the favor or company of persistently: chased me until I agreed to a date.
4. To put to flight; drive: chased the dog away.
5. Baseball a. To cause (an opposing pitcher) to be removed from a game by batting well.
b. To swing at and miss (a pitch, especially one out of the strike zone).
v.intr.1. To go or follow in pursuit.
2. Informal To go hurriedly; rush: chased all over looking for us.
n.1. The act of chasing; pursuit.
2. a. The hunting of game: the thrill of the chase.
b. Something that is hunted or pursued; quarry.
3. Chiefly British a. A privately owned, unenclosed game preserve.
b. The right to hunt or keep game on the land of others.
Idioms: chase (one's) tail To exert oneself vigorously but ineffectually.
give chase To engage in pursuit of quarry: Police gave chase to the speeding car.
[Middle English chasen, to hunt, from Old French chacier, from Vulgar Latin *captiāre, from Latin captāre, to catch; see catch.]
chase 2
(chās)n. Printing A rectangular steel or iron frame into which pages or columns of type are locked for printing or plate making.
[Perhaps from French châsse, case, reliquary, from Old French chasse, from Latin capsa.]
chase3floral chase motif on a lipstick case
chase 3
(chās)n.1. a. A groove cut in an object; a slot: the chase for the quarrel on a crossbow.
b. A trench or channel for drainpipes or wiring.
2. The part of a gun in front of the trunnions.
3. The cavity of a mold.
tr.v. chased,
chas·ing,
chas·es 1. To groove; indent.
2. To cut (the thread of a screw).
3. To decorate (metal) by engraving or embossing.
[Possibly from obsolete French
chas,
groove, enclosure, from Old French, from Latin
capsa,
box. V., variant of
enchase.]
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.