Meaning & use
follow relentlessly
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Meaning
phrasetransitive
To pursue someone or something continuously and without giving up, often in a determined or harsh way.
Grammar: Takes an object: follow someone relentlessly. The adverb 'relentlessly' describes how the following is done.
Patterns
- follow someone relentlessly
- follow something relentlessly
- be followed relentlessly by someone
The paparazzi followed the actress relentlessly through the airport.
Detectives followed the suspect relentlessly for weeks until they had enough evidence.
She followed her dream relentlessly, never letting setbacks stop her.
Common combinations
- follow relentlessly for years
- The reporter followed the scandal relentlessly for years.
- be followed relentlessly
- The politician was followed relentlessly by journalists.
- follow someone relentlessly
- The dog followed its owner relentlessly around the house.
Synonyms and how they differ
- pursue relentlessly
- More formal and often used in legal or military contexts.
- hound
- Stronger and more negative; it implies harassment rather than just persistent following.
- shadow
- Means to follow secretly, while 'follow relentlessly' can be open and determined.
Opposites
Commonly confused: follow relentlessly or follow closely?
follow relentlessly vs follow closely
This means to stay near someone, but it does not imply the same relentless, never-stopping determination.
Practice
Choose the sentence that uses 'follow relentlessly' correctly.
Choose one answer.
The adverb 'relentlessly' usually comes after the object or before the verb. Option 1 places it between the verb and object, which is unnatural; option 3 is possible but less common; option 4 uses an adjective instead of an adverb.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “follow relentlessly”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.