穷追 (qióng zhuī) — to pursue relentlessly, to give hot pursuit

Definition

A formal verb meaning to pursue relentlessly, never giving up. 穷 emphasizes 'to the end' and pairs naturally with 不舍 or 到底.

verb

to pursue relentlesslyto give hot pursuit

。
Jǐng fāng duì xián yí rén qióng zhuī bù shě.
The police gave hot pursuit of the suspect.
穷追。
Jì zhě duì zhēn xiàng qióng zhuī dào dǐ.
The journalist pursued the truth relentlessly.
，穷追，。
Zài bǐ sài zhōng, tā qióng zhuī duì fāng qiú yuán, zhōng yú qiǎng dào le qiú.
In the game, he hotly pursued the opposing player and finally got the ball.

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

穷qióngexhaustive; thorough

To 追 with 穷 effort is to pursue relentlessly.

Characters in this word

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 窮; 穷 is its simplified writing.

穴躬窮

Meaning part形符xíngfú

穴穴xuécave; nest; confinement

Sound part声符shēngfú

躬

躬gōng窮qióng

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

In the traditional form 窮, 穴 (cave; nest; confinement) gives the sense and 躬 gives the sound; this is about 窮, not the simplified 穷.

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

辶𠂤追

Meaning part形符xíngfú

辶Written in full as辵chuòmovement

Sound part声符shēngfú

𠂤

𠂤𠂤追zhuī

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The 辶 part shows movement, while 𠂤 gives the sound, for the sense of moving after or pursuing.