pursued

[ per-sood ]

adjective

1. followed by a person or animal wishing to overtake, capture, kill, etc.; chased:

   Dogs' keen sense of smell and hunting instinct make it difficult for a pursued animal to escape.

2. being the goal or purpose that motivates a person’s striving or effort:

   Every phrase in the document has been carefully weighed to serve the pursued objective.

3. carried on or continued:

   Going from one university to another for short stays might be less beneficial than a steadily pursued course at one place.

4. practiced, as an occupation, pastime, etc.:

   Whether as a hobby or as a career, music and dance have always been among the most highly pursued performing arts.

5. studied or discussed over some time:

   This publication focuses on the long pursued question of best timing for orthodontic treatment.

verb

1. the simple past tense and past participle of pursue ( def ).

Other Words From

• un·pur·sued adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of pursued¹

pursue ( def ) + -ed ²( def )

Example Sentences

Cronin and his staff doggedly pursued Nikolas Khamenia, a star forward from Harvard-Westlake, as part of an intense recruiting battle that ultimately went in Duke’s favor when Khamenia announced last month that he would become a Blue Devil.

From Los Angeles Times

Experts say he is eager to install a loyalist as attorney general who will not only fight to end any of those prosecutions that are still active by the time he takes office, but who will protect him against any new prosecutions moving forward and use the criminal justice system to go after Trump’s enemies, including political opponents and the prosecutors who charged him with crimes or pursued civil cases against him or his businesses.

From Los Angeles Times

Trump and some other legal minds in his orbit have suggested Trump should go after those prosecutors who have targeted him and his companies — including Special Counsel Jack Smith, who has pursued criminal cases against Trump for his incitement of the Jan. 6 insurrection and his hoarding of classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago resort; and Letitia “Tish” James, the New York attorney general who won a massive fraud judgment against Trump for inflating his net worth to win preferable insurance and loan terms.

From Los Angeles Times

Northern responded by withdrawing all live prosecutions against those pursued in similar circumstances and promised to review historical cases.

From BBC

“He was pursued because Trump did not like him. But in the end, a grand jury would not indict him,” Bromwich said.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• followed