Quest
n.hopeful, energeticregister not recorded
What it means
A sustained and purposeful search for something valuable or important.
Reach for it when giving a long search a sense of commitment and meaning
Their quest for a safer material led to an unexpected discovery.
Choose between these
7- everyday
search
looking for something is the simple point
not when Search can be brief or routine and lacks a quest's larger purpose.
- warm
personal change matters alongside the destination
not when A journey can wander without a specific sought object.
- professional
mission
the goal guides organized action
not when Mission implies assignment or duty more than discovery.
- professional
pursuit
continued effort moves toward an aim
not when Pursuit may feel competitive or relentless.
- formal
expedition
organized travel supports investigation
not when Expedition is physical and logistical rather than inward.
- literary
odyssey
a long eventful search deserves epic language
not when Odyssey is excessive for a modest practical project.
- literary
pilgrimage
the search carries spiritual or reverent meaning
not when Pilgrimage should not be borrowed casually when no devotion is involved.
Said against
3- abandonment
- aimlessness
- surrender
It naturally appears in
3- quest for knowledge
Her quest for knowledge carried her from the workshop to the archive.
- personal quest
A personal quest to find his birth village shaped the journey.
- begin a quest
The children begin a quest for every hidden symbol in the garden.
Where this comes from
- wiktionary, English noun sense: long purposeful search opens in a new tab · retrieved 2026-07-26
The definition and the example on this page are written here. The dictionaries above ground which meaning is being described, not the wording.