follow
fol·low (fŏlʹō)v. fol·lowed, fol·low·ing, fol·lowsv. tr. 1. To come or go after; proceed behind: Follow the usher to your seat. 2. a. To go after in or as if in pursuit: “The wrong she had done followed her and haunted her dream” (Katherine Anne Porter). b. To keep under surveillance: followed the suspect around town. 3. a. To move along the course of; take: We followed a path to the shore. b. To go in the direction of; be guided by: followed the sun westward across the plains; followed the signs to the zoo. 4. To accept the guidance, command, or leadership of: follow a spiritual master; rebels who refused to follow their commander. 5. To adhere to; practice: followed family traditions. 6. To take as a model or precedent; imitate: followed my example and resigned. 7. a. To act in agreement or compliance with; obey: follow the rules; follow one's instincts. b. To keep to or stick to: followed the recipe; follow a diet. 8. To engage in (a trade or occupation); work at. 9. To come after in order, time, or position: Night follows day. 10. To bring something about at a later time than or as a consequence of: She followed her lecture with a question-and-answer period. The band followed its hit record with a tour. 11. To occur or be evident as a consequence of: Your conclusion does not follow your premise. 12. a. To watch or observe closely: followed the bird through binoculars. b. To be attentive to; pay close heed to: too sleepy to follow the sermon. c. To keep oneself informed of the course, progress, or fortunes of: follow the stock market; followed the local teams. 13. To grasp the meaning or logic of; understand: Do you follow my argument?v. intr. 1. To come, move, or take place after another person or thing in order or time. 2. To occur or be evident as a consequence; result: If you ignore your diet, trouble will follow. 3. To grasp the meaning or reasoning of something; understand.n. 1. The act or an instance of following. 2. Games. A billiards shot in which the cue ball is struck above center so that it follows the path of the object ball after impact.Phrasal Verbs:follow along To move or proceed in unison or in accord with an example: followed along with the song.follow through 1. Sports To carry a stroke to natural completion after hitting or releasing a ball or other object. 2. To carry an act, project, or intention to completion; pursue fully: followed through on her promise to reorganize the department.follow up 1. To carry to completion; follow through on: followed up their recommendations with concrete proposals. 2. To increase the effectiveness or enhance the success of by further action: followed up her interview with an e-mail.Idioms:as follows As will be stated next. Used to introduce a specified enumeration, explanation, or command.follow (one's) nose 1. To move straight ahead or in a direct path. 2. Informal To be guided by instinct: had no formal training but became a success by following his nose.follow suit 1. Games To play a card of the same suit as the one led. 2. To do as another has done; follow an example. [Middle English folowen, from Old English folgian.] Synonyms: follow, succeed, ensue, result, supervene These verbs mean to come after something or someone. Follow, which has the widest application, can refer to coming after in time or order, as a consequence or result, or by the operation of logic: Night follows day. He disregarded doctor's orders, and a relapse followed. Because she decries violence, it follows that she won't carry a gun. To succeed is to come next after another, especially in planned order determined by considerations such as rank, inheritance, or election: The heir apparent succeeded to the throne. Ensue usually applies to what is a consequence or logical development: After the government was toppled, chaos ensued. Result implies that what follows is caused by what has preceded: Failure to file an income tax return can result in a fine. Supervene, in contrast, refers to something that is often unexpected and that has little relation to what has preceded: “A bad harvest supervened” (Charlotte Brontë). Usage Note: As follows (not as follow) is the established form of the idiom regardless of whether the noun that precedes it is singular or plural: The regulations are as follows.
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