quarry

A quarry can be a place where stone is dug from the earth for building. Picture a wide, open site where workers cut out granite, limestone, or marble. But "quarry" also has another meaning linked to hunting. It can mean the animal or person being chased or sought. A lion's quarry is a zebra; in a story, a detective's quarry might be a criminal. Most often, the word points either to a stone pit or to the target of a hunt or pursuit.

The word "quarry" has a surprisingly rich range of uses. Most directly, a *quarry* is an open place where stone such as granite, limestone, or marble is cut from the earth. You can picture a broad, dusty site with exposed rock walls and heavy machines lifting out huge blocks for roads, buildings, or monuments. "The construction crew worked tirelessly at the quarry, hauling out tons of rock each day."

But "quarry" also carries a hunting meaning. In this sense, a *quarry* is the animal being hunted, or more broadly, the thing being chased. A hawk's quarry might be a field mouse; a hunter's quarry could be a deer. In stories and formal writing, the word can also describe a person who is being tracked or pursued, which gives the scene a tense feeling of chase and danger.

As a verb, *quarry* usually means to dig stone from a quarry. A company may quarry limestone for cement, or workers may quarry marble for statues and floors. This verb is tied mainly to rock and mining, not to asking questions or searching records.

So, whether you're picturing a landscape cut open for stone or a creature being hunted across open ground, "quarry" is a word of extraction and pursuit. In everyday use, the noun meanings are the most common: the place where stone is taken out, and the prey or target being followed.