Sequere

Sequere is a Latin verb meaning "to follow" or "to pursue." In classical usage the verb is deponent: sequor, sequi, secutus sum. Sequere itself is the second-person singular imperative, used to give a direct command: "follow!" The infinitive is sequi, and the perfect participle is secutus sum. Because it is deponent, its forms look passive but carry active meaning (for example, sequor = “I follow,” not “I am followed”).

Usage and senses

Sequere covers following in space (literally accompanying someone or something), following in order or in a sequence, and pursuing a goal or outcome. It governs a direct object in the accusative when referring to following someone or something, as in Sequere me — "Follow me." The verb also appears in common phrases and in compound forms: sequitur means “it follows” or “he follows,” and non sequitur is a well-known term meaning “it does not follow” (used in logic and rhetoric).

Derivatives and related terms

English borrowings trace back to the same Latin root sequi: sequence, sequential, sequel, and sequela (an outcome or consequence). The related noun sequentia denotes a following or succession.

See also

Sequi; sequor; non sequitur; sequence; sequel.