In Britain, Hunting and Shooting Are Not the Same Word
Hunting is pursuing wild animals. British usage reserves it for pursuit with hounds, and calls the rest shooting.
Hunting is the pursuit of wild animals for food or sport. British and American usage differ sharply. In Britain, hunting traditionally means pursuit with hounds on horseback; going after birds or deer with a gun is *shooting* or *stalking*. In America, hunting covers all of it.
- Pursuing wild animals. *Deer hunting.*
- Pursuit with hounds (British). *The hunting season.*
- Searching hard for something. *Job hunting.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun | hunting | Big-game hunting. |
| Verb | hunt | They hunt at dawn. |
| Person | hunter | An experienced hunter. |
| Noun | hunt | A fox hunt. |
| Compound | house-hunting | We are house-hunting. |
How it is used in a sentence
- Hunting with dogs was restricted by law in 2004.The English and Welsh Hunting Act.
- He has been job hunting since March.The searching sense, very common.
- It turned into a witch-hunt.A search for enemies, from the trials of the 1600s.
Words for the pursuit
- Hunting — pursuing animals; with hounds, in British usage
- Shooting — with a gun, especially game birds
- Stalking — approaching deer quietly on foot
- Trapping — catching with devices rather than pursuit
- Poaching — taking game illegally
From Old English *huntian*. The metaphorical uses — house-hunting, bargain-hunting, witch-hunt — are all much younger, and all keep the idea of a determined search.
Hunting or shooting in British English?
Hunting means with hounds; shooting means with a gun. Asking a British farmer if he hunts pheasants will get you corrected.
Where does witch-hunt come from?
From the organised searches for supposed witches in Europe and North America in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries.