probe

1 of 2

noun

plural probes
1
: a slender medical instrument used especially for exploration (as of a wound or body cavity)
2
a
: any of various testing devices or substances: such as
(1)
: a pointed metal tip for making electrical contact with a circuit element being checked
(2)
: a usually small object that is inserted into something so as to test conditions at a given point
(3)
: a device used to penetrate or send back information especially from outer space or a celestial body
(4)
: a device (such as an ultrasound generator) or a substance (such as radioactively labeled DNA) used to obtain specific information for diagnostic or experimental purposes
b
: a pipe on the receiving airplane thrust into the drogue of the delivering airplane in air refueling
3
a
: the action of probing
b
: a penetrating or critical investigation
c
: a tentative exploratory advance or survey

probe

2 of 2

verb

probed; probing; probes

transitive verb

1
: to search into and explore very thoroughly : subject to a penetrating investigation
2
: to examine with a probe
uncrewed vehicles probed space

intransitive verb

: to make a searching exploratory investigation
prober noun
Choose the Right Synonym for probe

enter, penetrate, pierce, probe mean to make way into something.

enter is the most general of these and may imply either going in or forcing a way in.

entered the city in triumph

penetrate carries a strong implication of an impelling force or compelling power that achieves entrance.

the enemy penetrated the fortress

pierce means an entering or cutting through with a sharp pointed instrument.

pierced the boil with a lancet

probe implies penetration to investigate or explore something hidden from sight or knowledge.

probed the depths of the sea

Examples of probe in a Sentence

Noun The FBI probe did not produce any new evidence. a congressional probe into the accusations Verb His questions made it clear he was probing for information. He didn't like the police probing into his past. He didn't like the police probing him about his past. The doctor probed the wound with his finger. Searchers probed the mud with long poles. She probed the files for evidence that would help the investigation. See More
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
The probe looked into incidents allegedly involving the singer between 2009 and 2011 in West Hollywood. Jonah Valdez, Los Angeles Times, 29 Sep. 2023 Photo: Eric Lee for The Wall Street Journal Outdoor advertising company Clear Channel Outdoor Holdings agreed to pay more than $26 million to resolve a U.S. probe into bribes the company allegedly paid in China. Richard Vanderford, WSJ, 28 Sep. 2023 The material, which dates to the birth of the solar system, was dropped off by parachute in the Utah desert by NASA’s OSIRIS-REx spacecraft three years after the probe retrieved it from the asteroid Bennu. Joel Achenbach, Washington Post, 28 Sep. 2023 That led some investors to call for an SEC probe into Cohen’s actions, with some concerned Cohen might have manipulated the markets with his trades. Chris Morris, Fortune, 28 Sep. 2023 Investigators led by the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives have declined to comment on specifics of the probe, as have Maui County officials. Michael Biesecker, Jennifer McDermott, The Christian Science Monitor, 27 Sep. 2023 But Simons reportedly diverted agency resources from that probe against Meta’s Facebook following the platform’s Cambridge Analytica scandal. Makena Kelly, The Verge, 26 Sep. 2023 The House Ethics Committee reportedly reopened its own probe into his conduct in June 2023, the status of which is unknown. Kyler Alvord, Peoplemag, 26 Sep. 2023 Previously, two law enforcement officials briefed on the probe told ABC News on Tuesday the gun appeared to have been purchased legally. Meredith Deliso, ABC News, 20 Sep. 2023
Verb
The list includes satellites, spacecraft, rovers, probes and other scientific equipment. Theo Nicitopoulos, Discover Magazine, 28 Sep. 2023 For weeks, Ukrainian forces have been probing Russian defenses in the southeast, looking for an opening to push their armored vehicles behind the main Russian line. Andrew E. Kramer, New York Times, 22 Sep. 2023 Unfortunately, Amazon didn’t make the new Alexa available for journalists to probe and chat with. Geoffrey A. Fowler, Washington Post, 20 Sep. 2023 The festival has also revealed the films playing in two of the three Focus programs: Fabrications, which probes the difference between reality and realism, and 16 Worlds on 16, an homage to 16mm film. Leo Barraclough, Variety, 19 Sep. 2023 The Senate Armed Services Committee is probing national-security issues raised by Elon Musk’s decision not to extend the private Starlink satellite network to aid a Ukrainian attack on Russian warships near the Crimean coast. Steven T. Dennis, Fortune, 14 Sep. 2023 Reporters for these recent pieces probing the reality of our invisible injuries routinely consult van der Kolk as an arbitrator. Ana Marie Cox, The New Republic, 14 Sep. 2023 House Republicans have been probing Hunter Biden’s business dealings since taking control of the House last year. Erin B. Logan, Los Angeles Times, 11 Sep. 2023 Dunne is an expert at probing the baggage that comes along with maturity — namely, responsibility. Joseph Hudak, Rolling Stone, 7 Sep. 2023 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'probe.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Medieval Latin proba examination, from Latin probare

First Known Use

Noun

1580, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

circa 1542, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 2

Time Traveler
The first known use of probe was circa 1542

Dictionary Entries Near probe

Cite this Entry

“Probe.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/probe. Accessed 5 Oct. 2023.

Kids Definition

probe

1 of 2 noun
1
: a slender medical instrument especially for examining a cavity (as a deep wound)
2
: a device used to penetrate or send back information especially from outer space
3
: a careful investigation
4
: an attempt to explore or learn about some unknown place
a space probe

probe

2 of 2 verb
probed; probing
1
: to examine with or as if with a probe
2
: to investigate thoroughly
prober noun

Medical Definition

probe

1 of 2 noun
1
: a surgical instrument that consists typically of a light slender fairly flexible pointed metal instrument like a small rod that is used typically for locating a foreign body (as a bullet embedded in a part of the body), for exploring a wound or suppurative tract by prodding or piercing, or for penetrating and exploring bodily passages and cavities
2
: a device (as an ultrasound generator) or a substance (as radioactively labeled DNA) used to obtain specific information (as detection of a virus or location of specific segments of a nucleic acid) for diagnostic or experimental purposes
the radioactive probe revealed the distribution of molecules in the membrane

probe

2 of 2 verb
probed; probing

transitive verb

: to examine with or as if with a probe
probe a wound

intransitive verb

: to search by using a probe
probe for a bullet

More from Merriam-Webster on probe

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