detect
verb
Simple meaning
To discover or find by careful search, examination.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
dihtehktSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
dɪˈtɛkt
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
verb
To discover or find by careful search, examination, or probing.
intransitiveinformal
To work or solve cases as a detective.
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- B1 · Intermediate (estimated)
- Frequency
- Common
- Typical Use
- Everyday English
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: To discover or find by careful search, examination, or probing.
Used this way, detect is a reasonably familiar word with a clearly warm, approving pull. It quietly approves while staying precise.
- Emotional tone
- Positive
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Gentle
- How common
- Moderately common
- Connotation
- Careful and exacting
- Usage feel
- Precise and approving
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
More ways to use detect
- “She detected high levels of lead in her drinking water.”verb
Share your sentence
Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
Tap the highlighted word to open its own entry.
Word Family
Related forms, grouped by how they connect.
Inflected forms
Grammatical variations of the same word.
Perceived or discerned.
A police investigation to determine the perpetrator.
Word family
Words built from the same root.
Any device that receives a signal or stimulus (as heat or pressure or light or motion etc.) and responds to it in a distinctive manner.
A police officer who investigates crimes.
Related words
Connected by subject or meaning, not by word formation.
Detector that gives a signal when it detects the presence of metal.
Measuring instrument in which the echo of a pulse of microwave radiation is used to detect and locate distant objects.
A rapid automatic system to detect plastic explosives in passengers' luggage using X-ray technology and computers.
A system for screening luggage in airports.
Use This Word
See how this word sounds in a real sentence.
Ask Vocabaura
Understand the word your way.
What Does It Mean Here?
Words can change meaning depending on context.
Use it yourself
Keep learning “detect” by choosing the kind of practice you need next.
- Practice sentence writingWrite sentences with vocabulary and get instant feedback.
- Practice in contextAnswer short vocabulary questions drawn from real situations.
- Review vocabularyTest your recall and strengthen words over time.
- Practice typingType vocabulary in short rounds that draw from words you've learned and saved.
Want to type words like this one without looking at the keyboard? Each typing round draws from words you've learned, saved or need to review. Follow the free Learn to Type lessons and type your own vocabulary with confidence.
Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.