I. ˈhənt verb
( -ed/-ing/-s )
Etymology: Middle English hunten, from Old English huntian; akin to Old English hentan to attack, seize, Old High German heri hunda battle spoils, Old Norse henda to grasp, Old Swedish hinna to attain, reach, Gothic fra hinthan to take captive
transitive verb
1.
a. : to follow or search for (game or prey) for the purpose and with the means of capturing or killing : pursue (game or prey) for food or in sport
hunt buffalo
wolves hunt large prey only in packs
especially : to pursue with weapons and often with trained animals
b. : to use or manage in the search for game
hunts a pack of dogs
2.
a. : to pursue, follow, or track (a person) especially with the object of capture — often used with down
surviving patriots … were hunted down in legal manner and put to death — J.A.Froude
b. : to try to find, locate, or obtain especially by sustained or careful search or effort
missing persons are hunted by the police
he's hunting a job
c. : to find, uncover, or obtain after diligent search — used with up, out, or down
hunting out recondite meanings in poems — Howard M. Jones
hunted up a lot of valuable new evidence
3. : to drive or chase especially by hounding, harrying, or persecuting
members of the colonial council … were hunted from their homes — J.T.Adams
4. : to traverse or go over in quest of game or quarry
hunts the swamp for moths — J.D.Hart
intransitive verb
1. : to take part in a hunt : pursue game
2. : to attempt to find, uncover, or obtain something especially by diligent search — used with for or after
hunt for a lost wallet
hunting for a street address
ideas would not come to me if I went out to hunt for them — Ellen Glasgow
3. : to oscillate alternately to each side of a neutral point or to run alternately faster and slower instead of steadily because of insufficient stability controls — used especially of a device or machine
sudden changes of load frequently cause the governor to hunt , i.e., to open too wide, then close too far, and so on — S.H.Mortensen & Sterling Beckwith
hunting, in electrical engineering, is a periodic increase or decrease in the speed of synchronous machinery operating in parallel, such as generators or motors — F.D.Jones
a magnetic compass … must be damped to prevent lengthy oscillation or hunting — Benjamin Dutton
4. of a bell : to shift continuously up or down in the order of striking in change ringing
Synonyms: see seek
II. noun
( -s )
Etymology: Middle English hunte, from hunten, v.
1. : the act, practice, or an instance of hunting : chase
the hunt is up; the morn is bright and gray — Shakespeare
2. : an association of huntsmen : a number of persons with horses and dogs engaged in hunting or riding to hounds
a gate was being held open … and the hunt was streaming through — Adrian Bell
3. : an instance of hunting (as in a mechanical device)
4. : a regular course followed by each bell up or down the striking order in change ringing