inquiry
noun
Simple meaning
A search for truth, information.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
ihnkwyreeSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
ɪnkˈwaɪɹi
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.
noun
The act of inquiring; a seeking of information by asking questions; interrogation; a question or questioning.
A search for truth, information, or knowledge; examination of facts or principles; research; investigation; inquest.
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- A2 · Elementary (estimated)
- Frequency
- Common
- Typical Use
- General English
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: The act of inquiring; a seeking of information by asking questions; interrogation; a question or questioning.
Used this way, inquiry is a reasonably familiar word with a clearly warm, approving pull. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.
- Emotional tone
- Positive
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Gentle
- How common
- Moderately common
- Connotation
- Curious and questioning
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
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Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
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Word Family
Related forms, grouped by how they connect.
Word family
Words built from the same root.
Someone who asks a question.
Compound terms
Established multiword terms.
A private detective.
An ordering of questions so as to develop a particular argument.
Related words
Connected by subject or meaning, not by word formation.
Given to inquiry.
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What Does It Mean Here?
Words can change meaning depending on context.
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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.