ENGLISH
REFERENCE

seek

v.
B2 Upper Intermediate Oxford US //ˈsik// UK //sˈiːk// seek Academic Archaic General-service

v. to try to find or get something. You use this when you are looking for something important, like help, a job, or the truth.

v. to attempt to find, obtain, or achieve something. Often used in formal or literary contexts to describe a search for abstract qualities or professional assistance.


SIMPLE

You should seek medical advice if the pain continues.

CONTEXTUAL

The company decided to seek legal counsel before signing the international merger agreement.

COMPLEX

In the digital age, users often seek information through complex algorithms, yet the quality of the results depends heavily on the precision of the search terms provided.

Synonyms
Origin

From Middle English seken (also sechen, whence dialectal English seech), from Old English sēċan (compare beseech); from Proto-West Germanic sōkijan, from Proto-Germanic sōkijaną (“to seek”), from Proto-Indo-European *seh₂g- (“to seek out”). Cognate with Saterland Frisian säike (“to seek”), West Frisian sykje (“to seek”), Dutch zoeken (“to seek”), Low German söken (“to seek”), German suchen (“to seek”), Danish søge (“to seek”), Swedish söka, Norwegian Bokmål søke (“to seek”), Norwegian Nynorsk søkja (“to seek”), Icelandic sækja (“to seek”). The Middle English and later Modern English hard /k/ derives from Old English sēcð, the third person singular; the forms with /k/ were then reinforced by cognate Old Norse sǿkja.

Usage

Irregular verb (seek, sought, sought). Transitive — typically takes a direct object or an infinitive phrase ('seek to do').

Pitfall

I am seeking for a jobI am seeking a jobUnlike 'look', the verb 'seek' is transitive and does not require the preposition 'for'.

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