ETYM French battue, from battre to beat. Related to Batter, Battuta.
A hunt in which beaters force the game to flee in the direction of the hunter.
Indiscriminate slaughter; driving game towards slaughter.
Driving of game toward guns; shooting-party of that kind; massacre of helpless persons.

1. The pursuit and killing or capture of wild animals regarded as a sport; SYN. hunting.
2. The work of finding and killing or capturing animals for food or pelts; SYN. hunting.
3. Any pursuit of an elusive goal.
4. A search for an alternative that meets cognitive criteria; SYN. pursuit, quest.
5. An association of huntsmen who hunt for sport; SYN. hunt club. + prikaži više

Searching out and harassing dissenters.
Persecution of minority political opponents or socially nonconformist groups without any regard for their guilt or innocence. Witch-hunts are often accompanied by a degree of public hysteria; for example, the McCarthy anticommunist hearings during the 1950s in the US. witch hunt