book-hunter
Definition
Noun: - A "book-hunter" is a person who actively seeks out and collects rare, valuable, or antiquarian books, often with great enthusiasm and persistence.
Usage Examples
- (A collector who searches for rare books.)
- (A person who pursues valuable books as a hobby or profession.)
Advanced Usage
"to be a book-hunter at heart": to have a natural inclination for seeking rare books.
- Even as a child, he was a book-hunter at heart, always drawn to old bookshops. (His passion for finding rare books was innate.)
"book-hunter's prize": a particularly rare or valuable book discovered after long searching.
- Finding that 18th-century atlas was the book-hunter's prize of a lifetime. (The most treasured find for a collector.)
Variants and Related Words
Book-hunting (n): the activity or practice of seeking rare books.
- Book-hunting requires patience, knowledge, and a keen eye. (The pursuit of rare books as a pastime.)
Book-hunt (v, rare): to engage in the activity of seeking rare books.
- They decided to book-hunt through the old quarter of the city. (To search for rare books.)
Synonyms
- Bibliophile: a person who loves or collects books, especially rare ones.
- Book collector: a person who accumulates books as a hobby or investment.
- Rare book dealer: a professional who buys and sells rare books.
Phrasal Verbs
Hunt down (books): to search persistently for specific books.
- He hunted down every copy of the limited edition. (He searched thoroughly until he found them.)
Scour for (books): to search an area thoroughly for books.
- She scoured the library sales for hidden gems. (She searched all available places for valuable books.)
Related Idioms
A book-hunter's paradise: a place with an abundance of rare or interesting books.
- The annual book fair is a book-hunter's paradise. (A location ideal for finding rare books.)
To have the nose of a book-hunter: to have an instinct for finding valuable books.
- With his training, he developed the nose of a book-hunter. (He acquired the skill to detect rare books.)