research

noun re·search \ ri-ˈsərch , ˈrē-ˌsərch \

Updated on: 20 May 2018

1 : careful or diligent search

2 : studious inquiry or examination; especially : investigation or experimentation aimed at the discovery and interpretation of facts, revision of accepted theories or laws in the light of new facts, or practical application of such new or revised theories or laws

3 : the collecting of information about a particular subject

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Examples of research in a Sentence

She conducts research into the causes of Alzheimer's disease.
Recent research shows that the disease is caused in part by bad nutrition.
The study is an important piece of research.
He did a lot of research before buying his car.

Recent Examples of research from the Web

The new research, led by NASA's Matthew Rodell, pulls together these and other findings to identify 34 global regions that either gained or lost more than 32 billion tons of water between 2002 and 2016.

— chris mooney, chicagotribune.com, "Humans are causing massive changes in the location of water all over the Earth, NASA says," 17 May 2018
Her cells have allowed for advances in cancer treatment, AIDS research, cloning, stem-cell studies and so much more.

— hollie silverman, CNN, "The Smithsonian unveils a portrait of Henrietta Lacks, the black farmer whose cells led to medical miracles," 16 May 2018
Note: The research, sponsored by CarTrawler, in March looked for two award seats on each airline’s 10 busiest long routes and 10 busiest medium-length routes for 14 different round-trip dates between June and October.

— scott mccartney, WSJ, "Top Frequent-Flier Programs for 2018," 16 May 2018
One day last summer, Microsoft’s director of artificial intelligence research, Eric Horvitz, activated the Autopilot function of his Tesla sedan.

— tom simonite, WIRED, "Tech Firms Move to Put Ethical Guard Rails Around AI," 16 May 2018
Gynecologists can have legitimate reasons to take pictures, including research, teaching and soliciting second opinions from colleagues.

— paul pringle, latimes.com, "For years, a doctor was accused of bad behavior with young women. USC let him continue treating students," 15 May 2018
Drawing on recent research, Filson’s is narrow at the waist to ease airflow.

— Outside Online, "The Best Dog Gear of 2018," 15 May 2018
Piper Trust's goal is to improve the well-being of people in Maricopa County in six key areas: arts and culture, children, education, health care and medical research, older adults, and religious organizations.

— catherine reagor, azcentral, "Arizona's largest private trust names new CEO, plans to donate $22M," 14 May 2018
But more-recent research into the mind’s influence has made for much trickier analogies.

— paul bisceglio, The Atlantic, "The Wisdom of Running a 2,189-Mile Marathon," 13 May 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'research.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of research

Middle French recerche, from recercher to go about seeking, from Old French recerchier, from re- + cerchier, sercher to search — more at search

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1577

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year