Definition of investigate
investigated
;investigating
transitive verb
: to observe or study by close examination and systematic inquiry
intransitive verb
: to make a systematic examination; especially : to conduct an official inquiry
From the M-W Editors
Examples of investigate in a Sentence
The police are still investigating the murder.
The accident was thoroughly investigated.
The manager promised to investigate when we pointed out an error on our bill.
He was investigated for his involvement in the incident.
Recent Examples of investigate from the Web
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The bill would have broadened suspects that police could investigate and arrest, but the government’s lawyers couldn’t come up with a proper definition for extremism.
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Homicide detectives are investigating the death of a 38-year-old man who was found suffering from a stab wound on a sidewalk in North Park Monday night.
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The Senate intelligence committee, which is investigating Russia's meddling in the 2016 U.S. presidential election, has requested information and documents from Trump's campaign dating back to July 2015, the AP and other news outlets confirmed.
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Though its drugs are generally cheap, some have also risen sharply in price, and prosecutors have been investigating claims of price-fixing by some of the largest players, including Mylan.
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Police in Phenix City are investigating an apparent shooting spree at a block party that injured a dozen people.
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One brother living in Libya allegedly had been investigated for links to the Islamic State group, and Abedi’s father had allegedly belonged to a Libyan militant group years ago that was backed by al-Qaida.
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The case is being investigated as a possible hate crime.
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For the past two years the Securities and Exchange Commission has been investigating grants made by Alexion in Brazil, Colombia, Japan, Russia, and Turkey, with a focus on potential violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'investigate'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Origin and Etymology of investigate
Latin investigatus, past participle of investigare to track, investigate, from in- + vestigium footprint, track
INVESTIGATE Defined for English Language Learners
investigate
playDefinition of investigate for English Language Learners
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: to try to find out the facts about (something, such as a crime or an accident) in order to learn how it happened, who did it, etc.
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: to try to get information about (someone who may have done something illegal)
INVESTIGATE Defined for Kids
investigate
playDefinition of investigate for Students
investigated
;investigating
: to study by close examination and questioning Police are investigating the crime.
investigator
\-ˌgā-tər\ nounLaw Dictionary
investigate
playLegal Definition of investigate
investigated
investigating
transitive verb
intransitive verb
Learn More about investigate
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See words that rhyme with investigate Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for investigate Spanish Central: Translation of investigate Nglish: Translation of investigate for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of investigate for Arabic speakers
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