INDEX:
1. to follow someone
2. to closely follow a person or animal in order to watch them
3. to follow a person or animal quickly in order to catch them
RELATED WORDS
happening after something : ↑ AFTER
obey a law or someone’s orders : ↑ OBEY
see also
↑ ESCAPE
↑ CATCH
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1. to follow someone
▷ follow /ˈfɒləʊǁˈfɑː-/ [intransitive/transitive verb]
to walk, drive, run etc behind someone else, going in the same direction as them, especially because you are going somewhere together :
▪ Follow me and I’ll show you where the library is.
▪ You drive on ahead and I’ll follow.
follow somebody around
to follow someone wherever they go, especially when this is annoying
▪ My little brother’s been following me around all day.
followed by somebody
▪ The woman entered the room, followed by three young children.
follow somebody out/down/across etc
▪ She didn’t notice that Jack had followed her into the kitchen.
▷ follow on /ˌfɒləʊ ˈɒnǁˌfɑː-/ [intransitive phrasal verb] British
to follow someone to the place where they are going but at a later time :
▪ You go ahead. I’ll follow on later.
follow on behind
▪ The bus set off first and we followed on behind in the car.
2. to closely follow a person or animal in order to watch them
▷ follow /ˈfɒləʊǁˈfɑː-/ [transitive verb]
▪ He followed her home to find out where she lived.
▪ Did you make sure you weren’t followed on the way over here?
▪ She complained to the police officer that she was being followed by two strangers.
▷ tail /teɪl/ [transitive verb] informal
if someone such as a police officer tails someone, they secretly follow that person to find out where they are going or what they are doing :
▪ That police car has been tailing us for the last 5 miles.
▪ A group of photographers tailed the couple all over London.
▷ be/sit on somebody’s tail /biː, ˌsɪt ɒn somebodyˈs ˈteɪl/ [verb phrase]
to follow close behind someone, especially in order to watch or catch them :
▪ A police car was on their tail within seconds of the alarm going off.
▪ We sat on their tail for about an hour until we lost them in traffic.
▷ shadow /ˈʃædəʊ/ [transitive verb]
to follow someone or something very closely in order to watch all their movements without them realizing that they are being followed :
▪ I want you to shadow him for the next three days and find out who he hangs out with.
▪ Consumed with jealousy, he shadowed her for three days, hoping to catch her with her lover.
▷ track/trail /træk, treɪl/ [transitive verb]
to follow a person or animal closely, especially by looking for signs showing that they have gone in a particular direction :
▪ Undercover agents have been tracking him for weeks.
▪ It would be impossible to trail anyone across this type of ground.
track/trail somebody to something
▪ The police trailed the gang to their hideout.
▪ Dogs are used to track the wolves to their lair in the forest.
▷ hound /haʊnd/ [transitive verb usually in passive]
to keep following someone and asking them questions about their activities, personal problems etc, in a way that is annoying or threatening :
▪ After the court case she was hounded relentlessly by the press.
▪ The couple found themselves hounded by photographers as they left the church.
▷ stalk /stɔːk/ [transitive verb]
to follow a person or animal quietly in order to catch, injure, kill them :
▪ Polar bears stalk seals that are resting on the ice.
▪ The killer would stalk his victim, overpower her and then brutally murder her.
▷ stalker /ˈstɔːkəʳ/ [countable noun]
a criminal or mentally ill person who continuously follows and watches someone in a threatening way, especially someone famous or someone they are attracted to :
▪ Women’s groups are demanding that Congress toughen the law against stalkers.
▪ The stalker’s reappearance has led to increased security around the actress.
3. to follow a person or animal quickly in order to catch them
▷ run after /ˌrʌn ˈɑːftəʳǁ-ˈæf-/ [transitive phrasal verb]
to run or walk quickly behind someone in order to catch them or talk to them, when they are going away from you :
▪ A group of little boys ran after him to ask for his autograph.
▪ She’s left her briefcase. Quick! Run after her!
▷ chase /tʃeɪs/ [transitive verb]
to run after someone in order to catch them, when they are trying to escape from you :
▪ I didn’t have the energy to chase him any more.
chase somebody across/up/down etc something
▪ The farmer chased the children across the field.
chase after
▪ We chased after him for about five blocks but then we lost him and had to turn back.
▷ pursue /pəʳˈsjuːǁ-ˈsuː/ [transitive verb] especially written
to chase someone in a very determined way - used especially in stories and news reports :
▪ Police pursued the gunman into an abandoned building.
▪ The ship was being pursued by enemy submarines.
▷ in pursuit /ɪn pəʳˈsjuːtǁ-ˈsuːt/ [adverb]
if you are in pursuit of someone, you chase them because you want to catch them -- used especially in stories and news reports :
▪ The robbers sped off in a stolen car with three police vehicles in pursuit.
in pursuit of
▪ Cheng raced through a crowded shopping mall in pursuit of the man who had grabbed her purse.
in hot pursuit
▪ A deer suddenly sprang across the road, with a pack of hunting dogs in hot pursuit.
▷ be on/at somebody’s heels /biː ɒn, æt somebodyˈs ˈhiːlz/ [verb phrase] written
to follow very closely behind someone who is trying to escape from you, especially when you want to catch or attack them - used especially in stories :
▪ The rebels headed for the border but government troops were still at their heels.
be hard/hot/close on somebody’s heels
▪ Just 15 minutes into the race Lawson was already hot on the champion’s heels.
on/at somebody’s heels
▪ He rushed out of the theatre with a pack of reporters at his heels.
▷ go after /ˌgəʊ ˈɑːftəʳǁ-ˈæf-/ [transitive phrasal verb]
to follow someone quickly especially because you want to talk to them :
▪ Don’t go after him now. Let him calm down first.
▷ give chase /ˌgɪv ˈtʃeɪs/ [verb phrase]
to start to chase someone who is trying to escape from you - used especially in stories and descriptions :
▪ Police spotted the car speeding on Dumbarton Bridge and quickly gave chase.