How to pronounce word in English - English Word Dictionary- Learn English free online - English Learning Online

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

fol·low [ ˈfä-(ˌ)lō]

noun

Definition of follow (Entry 2 of 2)

1 : the act or process of following

2 : forward spin given to a ball by striking it above center — compare draw, english

verb

[ˈfä-(ˌ)lō]

followed; following; follows

Definition of follow

(Entry 1 of 2)

transitive verb

1 : to go, proceed, or come after
//followed the guide

2a : to engage in as a calling or way of life : pursue
//wheat-growing is generally followed here

b : to walk or proceed along
//follow a path

3a : to be or act in accordance with
//follow directions

b : to accept as authority : obey
//followed his conscience

4a : to pursue in an effort to overtake
//Police followed the robbers attempting to escape.

b : to seek to attain
//follow knowledge

5 : to come into existence or take place as a result or consequence of
//disaster followed the blunder

6a : to come or take place after in time, sequence, or order
//A juggling act followed the singer.

b : to cause to be followed
//followed dinner with a liqueur

7 : to copy after : imitate the new building follows the facades and roof lines of the original buildings— Maxwell Mays

8a : to watch steadily
//followed the flight of the ball

b : to keep the mind on
//follow a speech

c : to attend closely to : keep abreast of
//followed his career with interest

d : to understand the sense or logic of (something, such as a line of thought)
//I don't quite follow your thinking.

e : to subscribe to the feed of (someone or something) especially on social media
//Follow us on Facebook/Twitter.

intransitive verb

1 : to go or come after a person or thing in place, time, or sequence
//If one sheep goes through the gate, the rest will follow.

2 : to result or occur as a consequence, effect, or inference
//Just because he's done some bad things, does it follow that he is a bad person?

as follows

: as comes next —used impersonally
//The names of the winners are as follows: Mary, James, and Sylvia.

follow one's nose

1 : to go in a straight or obvious course
//Just follow your nose until you get there; you can't miss it.

2 : to proceed without plan or reflection : obey one's instincts
//You don't need my advice—just follow your nose.

follow suit

1 : to play a card of the same suit as the card led

2 : to follow an example set
//When one airline lowers its fares, the others usually follow suit.

Synonyms & Antonyms for dainty

Synonyms: Verb

Synonyms: Antonyms:verb

Choose the Right Synonym for dainty

Verb

follow, succeed, ensue, supervene mean to come after something or someone. follow may apply to a coming after in time, position, or logical sequence.
// speeches followed the dinner succeed implies a coming after immediately in a sequence determined by natural order, inheritance, election, or laws of rank.
// she succeeded her father as head of the business ensue commonly suggests a logical consequence or naturally expected development.
// after the talk a general discussion ensued supervene suggests the following or beginning of something unforeseen or unpredictable.
// unable to continue because of supervening circumstances

synonyms see in addition chase

Recent Examples on the Web

Recent Examples on the Web: Verb
//Burial will follow in Mt. St. Benedict Cemetery, Bloomfield.
— courant.com, "Angela Eisenberg," 17 Sep. 2019
//Cousette followed and an exchange of gunfire ensued.
— Carol Robinson | Crobinson@al.com, al, "Tuscaloosa police officer shot to death; suspect in custody," 17 Sep. 2019
//As in the film and book, the musical will follow Andy, an ambitious young writer in New York City who lands a job at a prestigious fashion magazine, only to discover that her stylish boss is straight out of hell.
— Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, "The Devil Wears Prada musical to premiere in Chicago before Broadway run," 17 Sep. 2019
//The frenetic post-game celebration followed an improbable 10-7 victory by the Sun Devils (3-0) over Michigan State (2-1), which came in ranked 18th in one national poll and 19th in another and boasting the nation's top-ranked rushing defense.
— Michelle Gardner, azcentral, "ASU upsets No. 18 Michigan State 10-7 on Daniels' heroics, Spartan mistakes," 14 Sep. 2019
//Tee shirts with the words emblazoned in red, white, and blue followed shortly thereafter.
— Alex Shephard, The New Republic, "Second Tier in Top Form at Democratic Debate," 13 Sep. 2019
//These findings follow on the heels of a joint All-Party Parliamentary Group report by British lawmakers which showed applicants from African countries face far more visa challenges than applicants from other continents.
— Yomi Kazeem, Quartz Africa, "Three in four Africans applying for student visas in Canada this year have been rejected," 13 Sep. 2019
//Weeks of intense negotiations over her severance package followed her departure.
— Fox News, "Planned Parenthood, former CEO come to agreement on severance dispute," 17 Sep. 2019
//Adapted from Greg Rucka’s series of graphic novels, Stumptown follows Dex, an aspiring Portland private investigator who has more flaws than cases.
— Derek Lawrence, EW.com, "Stumptown is ready to bring you a type of character that 'didn't exist on television'," 17 Sep. 2019
Recent Examples on the Web: Noun
//The school did not respond to a follow-up request after Benedict’s and Auriemma’s comments about Fulmer.
— Alexa Philippou, courant.com, "UConn’s Evina Westbrook must sit out 2019-20 season after waiver appeal was denied; Geno says of Tennessee ‘you would not want your kid in that environment’," 13 Nov. 2019
//Multiple follow-ups occurred: the average interval was four years, and data were gathered as far back as 23 years.
— Gary Stix, Scientific American, "Literacy Might Shield the Brain from Dementia," 13 Nov. 2019
//Of a sample of 380 trials, 58% didn’t publish their results in a journal by the end of a year’s follow-up.
— Shraddha Chakradhar, STAT, "More trial results are being posted to public database, but data quality is lacking, report finds," 13 Nov. 2019
//An interesting follow-up study, Perlman adds, would be to look at dogs whose owners spoke languages that do not associate pitch and placement in space, such as Farsi.
— Eva Frederick, Science | AAAS, "Up, pup! Dogs, like humans, associate high-pitched sounds with lofty objects," 12 Nov. 2019
//In filmmaker Mike Flanagan’s adaptation of Stephen King’s Doctor Sleep, as well as the follow-up to Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining, Rose the Hat is the leader of a nomadic tribe called The True Knot.
— Brian Davids, The Hollywood Reporter, "'Doctor Sleep' Star Rebecca Ferguson on the After-Hours Fun on 'The Shining' Set," 8 Nov. 2019
//Five years later, the team published their follow-up.
— Zoë Schlanger, Quartz, "The world is stuck with decades of new plastic it can’t recycle," 8 Nov. 2019
//Rothfarb expanded on the statement in a follow-up email published on social media and reported by AL.com.
— Mahita Gajanan, Time, "How Trump's Visit to an Alabama Football Game Caused Controversy Before He Even Arrived," 8 Nov. 2019
//The team is currently searching out more people lacking olfactory bulbs for follow-up studies.
— Jason Daley, Smithsonian, "Some Women Without the Brain’s Olfactory Bulbs Can Still Smell. Scientists Say It Makes No Sense," 7 Nov. 2019

First Known Use of follow

Verb

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Noun

1661, in the meaning defined at sense 1

History and Etymology for follow

Verb and Noun

Middle English folwen, from Old English folgian; akin to Old High German folgēn to follow

Dictionary Entries near follow

Phrases Related to follow

a hard/tough act to follow

come/follow close/hard/hot on something's heels

come/follow close/hard/hot on the heels of (something)

follow about

follow around

follow in someone's footsteps

follow one's heart

More Synonyms and Antonyms offollow

Synonyms & Antonyms of follow

1 to come after in time

a wrap-up always follows the Super Bowl broadcast

Synonyms for follow

Words Related to follow

ensue

Antonyms for follow

2 to go after or on the track of

let's follow the boys to their hiding place

Synonyms for follow

Words Related to follow

Phrases Synonymous with follow

run after

Near Antonyms for follow

head

Antonyms for follow

3 to act according to the commands of

follow me, and you'll do OK

Synonyms for follow

Words Related to follow

Phrases Synonymous with follow

Near Antonyms for follow

disoblige

direct,
lead

Antonyms for follow

4 to make one's way through, across, or over

followed the path into the garden

Synonyms for follow

Words Related to follow

ride,
run

crisscross

5 to take notice of and be guided by

don't follow his advice

Synonyms for follow

Words Related to follow

Near Antonyms for follow

defy,
flout

slight,
snub

Antonyms for follow

6 to keep one's eyes on

stood on the platform and followed the departing train until it disappeared from sight

Synonyms for follow

Words Related to follow

Phrases Synonymous with follow

have one's eye on

Near Antonyms for follow

blink,
wink

More Definitions forfollow

verb

English Language Learners Definition of follow

: to go or come after or behind (someone or something)

: to go after or behind (someone) secretly and watch to find out what happens

: to come after (something) in time or place or as part of a series

verb

fol·low | \ ˈfä-lō \

followed; following

Kids Definition of follow

1 : to go or come after or behind
//The dog followed the children home. Dessert followed dinner.

2 : to come after in time or place
//Spring follows winter.

3 : to go on the track of
//Police followed a clue.

4 : to go along or beside
//Follow that path.

5 : to be led or guided by : obey
//Follow the instructions.

6 : to result from
//Panic followed the fire.

7 : to work in or at something as a way of life
//He followed the sea.

8 : to watch or pay attention to
//Just follow the bouncing ball.

9 : understand sense 1
//I'm not following this story.

follow suit

1 : to play a card that belongs to the same group (as hearts) as the one first played

2 : to do the same thing someone else has just done

follow through

: to complete something started
//You must follow through on your promise.

follow up

: to take additional similar or related action
//I followed up my letter with a phone call.

transitive verb

fol·low

Legal Definition of follow

: to be in accordance with (a prior decision) : accept as authoritative — see also precedent — compare overrule