re.ut describes desire or pursuit directed toward wind or spirit, repeatedly set within judgments of vanity.

The attested use presents desire or pursuit in construct expressions directed toward “wind” or “spirit”: it accompanies assessments of work, toil, gathering, jealousy, and restless desire as vanity, while Ecclesiastes 6:9 contrasts what the eyes see with the soul’s wandering.

1. Desire or pursuit directed toward wind or spirit · dominant

   The feminine singular construct noun occurs in expressions evaluated as vanity: Ecclesiastes 1:14, Ecclesiastes 2:11, Ecclesiastes 2:17, and Ecclesiastes 2:26 place the expression after reflections on works, toil, life, and gathering. Ecclesiastes 4:4 and Ecclesiastes 4:6 similarly connect it with jealous labor and troubled abundance, while Ecclesiastes 6:9 sets it beside the soul’s wandering and calls it vanity.

   Ecclesiastes 1:14Ecclesiastes 2:11Ecclesiastes 2:17Ecclesiastes 4:4Ecclesiastes 4:6Ecclesiastes 6:9

In the Anselm Project Bible: In Ecclesiastes 1:14, Ecclesiastes 2:11, Ecclesiastes 2:17, Ecclesiastes 2:26, Ecclesiastes 4:4, and Ecclesiastes 4:6, the APB presents the expression as “a striving after wind”; in Ecclesiastes 6:9 it has “a longing of the spirit.” Because the APB is a whole-verse translation, this variation should not by itself establish separate senses.