A cat's prey includes mice. The tiger is on the hunt for a zebra. Hunt can be a noun or verb. The tiger hunts for food. Prey is always a noun. Prey is the victim of a hunt.

In predation, the animal that is hunted and eaten is the .

"To hunt" is to search. The "hunt" is the search. The word "hunt" can be used "to search for and kill an animal." It can also be used just to mean "search for." In the fall, hunters put on orange jackets and go out to hunt deer. Cheetahs hunt gazelles. Cats hunt mice. Owls hunt mice, too. I lost my car keys and I had to hunt for them. I'm going to add another word, "predator." The "prey" is the animal that will be caught and eaten. The animal that hunts, kills, and eats prey is the "predator." "Prey" and "predator" are used for animals, not people. "Prey" and "predator" are used when the prey is the main food source for the predator. "Prey" always means something that is eaten for food. "X preys on Y" means X hunts for, catches, and eats Y. I hunted for my car keys, but (of course!) my car keys were not "prey." People who hunt, kill, and perhaps eat animals like deer are "hunters." Cheetahs, owls, and cats are predators. For birds (only), we can use the expression "birds of prey." Owls, hawks, and eagles are birds of prey. "Prey" (an animal hunted, caught, and eaten for food) is pronounced exactly the same way as "pray" (to ask for something, usually from a deity).