hunt down

Etymology

hunt + down

Verb

hunt down (third-person singular simple present hunts down, present participle hunted down, simple past and past participle hunting down)

1. To hunt something and capture or kill it.
2. To find with difficulty.

   I managed to hunt down a copy of the magazine.

   • 2013 July 26, Nick Miroff, “Mexico gets a taste for eating insects …”, in The Guardian Weekly, volume 189, number 7, page 32:

     The San Juan market is Mexico City's most famous deli of exotic meats, where an adventurous shopper can hunt down hard-to-find critters such as ostrich, wild boar and crocodile.