seek
Part of speech: verb
noun
Morphological type: simple
Topics: computing
engineering
mathematics
natural-sciences
physical-sciences
sciences
Etymology: From Middle English seke, seken, from Old English sēċan, sēċean, sœ̄ċan, from Proto-West Germanic *sōkijan, from Proto-Germanic *sōkijaną (“to seek”), from Proto-Indo-European *séh₂gyeti (“to seek out”), from *seh₂g- (“to follow, trace”).
Cognates
Cognate with Yola zeek (“to seek”), North Frisian schük, sjuk, säke (“to search, seek”), Saterland Frisian säike (“to search, seek”), West Frisian sykje (“to seek”), Alemannic German sueche, süeche (“to search, seek”), Bavarian suacha, suachn (“to search”), Central Franconian söke (“to search”), Cimbrian züuchan (“to seek”), Dutch zoeken (“to seek”), Low German söken (“to seek”), German suchen (“to seek”), Luxembourgish sichen (“to seek; to fetch”), Vilamovian zihia, zihja (“to seek”), Yiddish זוכן (zukhn, “to search, seek”), Danish søge (“to seek; to apply”), Faroese søkja (“to seek”), Icelandic sækja (“to seek”), Norwegian Bokmål søke (“to seek; to apply”), Norwegian Nynorsk søka, søke, søkja, søkje (“to seek; to apply”), Swedish söka (“to search”), Gothic 𐍃𐍉𐌺𐌾𐌰𐌽 (sōkjan, “to seek”); also Cornish hedhes (“to reach; to achieve; to manage”), Welsh haeddu (“to deserve, merit”), Latin sāgiō (“to perceive quickly or keenly with the senses”), Ancient Greek ἡγέομαι (hēgéomai, “to go before, precede; to lead; to believe, hold”), Albanian gjegj (“to answer; to obey”), Hittite 𒊭𒀀𒆠𒄑𒍣 (ša-a-ki-ez-zi, “to seek out”).
The Middle English and later Modern English hard /k/ derives from Old English sēcð, the third person singular.
Inflected forms:
form: seeks
pos: verb
tags: present
singular
third-person
form: seeking
pos: verb
tags: participle
present
form: sought
pos: verb
tags: participle
past
form: sought
pos: verb
tags: past
form: seeked
pos: verb
tags: error-unknown-tag
nonstandard
participle
past
verb
form: seeked
pos: verb
tags: error-unknown-tag
nonstandard
past
verb
form: no-table-tags
pos: verb
tags: table-tags
form: glossary
pos: verb
tags: inflection-template
form: seek
pos: verb
tags: infinitive
form: seek
pos: verb
tags: first-person
present
singular
form: sought
pos: verb
tags: first-person
past
singular
form: seek
pos: verb
tags: present
second-person
singular
form: seekest
pos: verb
tags: archaic
present
second-person
singular
form: sought
pos: verb
tags: past
second-person
singular
form: soughtest
pos: verb
tags: archaic
past
second-person
singular
form: seeks
pos: verb
tags: present
singular
third-person
form: seeketh
pos: verb
tags: archaic
present
singular
third-person
form: sought
pos: verb
tags: past
singular
third-person
form: seek
pos: verb
tags: plural
present
form: sought
pos: verb
tags: past
plural
form: seek
pos: verb
tags: present
subjunctive
form: sought
pos: verb
tags: past
subjunctive
form: seek
pos: verb
tags: imperative
present
form: -
pos: verb
tags: imperative
past
form: seeking
pos: verb
tags: participle
present
form: sought
pos: verb
tags: participle
past
form: seech
pos: verb
tags: alternative
dialectal
form: seeke
pos: verb
tags: alternative
obsolete
form: seeks
pos: noun
tags: plural
form: seech
pos: noun
tags: alternative
dialectal
form: seeke
pos: noun
tags: alternative
obsolete
Senses:
gloss: To try to find; to look for; to search for.
pos: verb
tags: ambitransitive
examples: I seek wisdom.
Not long ago, it was difficult to produce photographs of tiny creatures with every part in focus.[…]A photo processing technique called focus stacking has changed that. Developed as a tool to electronically combine the sharpest bits of multiple digital images, focus stacking is a boon to biologists seeking full focus on a micron scale.
gloss: To ask for; to solicit; to beseech.
pos: verb
tags: transitive
examples: I seek forgiveness through repentance.
Others, tempting him, sought of him a sign.
“My, my! It is indeed a long way yet, look you!” said the pleasant woman of whom I sought directions.
gloss: To try to acquire or gain; to strive after; to aim at.
pos: verb
tags: transitive
examples: I sought my fortune on the goldfields.
But persecution sought the lives of men of this character.
I can no longer seek fame or glory, nor can I help trying to get rid of my riches, which separate me from my fellow-creatures.
Serene, smiling, enigmatic, she faced him with no fear whatever showing in her dark eyes.[…]She put back a truant curl from her forehead where it had sought egress to the world, and looked him full in the face now, drawing a deep breath which caused the round of her bosom to lift the lace at her throat.
gloss: To go, move, travel (in a given direction).
pos: verb
tags: intransitive
obsolete
examples: Ryght so he sought[…]towarde Sandewyche where he founde before hym many galyard knyghtes
gloss: To try to reach or come to; to go to; to resort to.
pos: verb
tags: transitive
examples: When the alarm went off I sought the exit in a panic.
Seek not Bethel, nor enter into Gilgal, and pass not to Beersheba: for Gilgal shall surely go into captivity, and Bethel shall come to nought.
Since great Ulysses sought the Phrygian plains
gloss: To attempt, endeavour, try
pos: verb
tags: intransitive
proscribed
sometimes
examples: Our company does not seek to limit its employees from using the internet or engaging in social networking.
gloss: To navigate through a data stream.
pos: verb
tags: intransitive
examples: Most of the changes made to this control are to accommodate the various constraints that playback of streaming media may impose in broadcast streams, such as the inability to seek through the media.
gloss: The operation of navigating through a stream.
pos: noun
examples: The number of seeks to retrieve a shot […] depends on the location of those frames on physical blocks.
Related words: hide and seek
seeker
Derived words: aseek
attention-seeking
beseek
foreseek
forseek
hide and go seek
hide and seek
ideal-seeking behavior
misseek
north-seeking pole
outseek
rent seeking
reseek
seekable
seek a knot in a bulrush
seek and ye shall find
seek for
seek-no-further
seek one's virtuous couch
seek out
seeksorrow
seek time
south-seeking pole
underseek
upseek
Translations: