Synonyms of combing

combing

verb

present participle of comb

as in searching

to look through (as a place) carefully or thoroughly in an effort to find or discover something

combed the library for the missing book

Synonyms & Similar Words

• searching
• scanning
• finding
• scouring
• surveying
• raking
• exploring
• examining
• investigating
• locating
• rummaging
• dredging
• trolling
• inspecting
• digging (through)
• ransacking
• hunting (through)
• sorting (through)
• discovering
• reviewing
• rifling
• scrutinizing
• detecting
• learning
• determining
• ascertaining
• auditing
• studying
• checking (out)
• probing
• frisking
• tracking (down)
• perusing
• hitting (on or upon)
• browsing
• getting
• snooping
• finding out
• running down
• prospecting
• poking (around)
• shaking down
• ferreting (out)
• patting down
• looking over
• glancing (over)
• descrying
• skirmishing
• grubbing (about)
• scaring up

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• hiding
• losing
• ignoring
• abandoning
• neglecting

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of combing

Investigators were combing through debris scattered across a field in northwest Oregon Thursday after two helicopters collided midair, killing three people and forcing the closure of a nearby highway, officials said. — Emma Tucker, CNN Money, 30 Oct. 2026

Simon loves finding researchers and combing through their papers to unearth information. — Tabitha Parent, PEOPLE, 30 Oct. 2026

Investigators were seen combing the area with flashlights, searching for evidence. — Naveen Dhaliwal, CBS News, 28 Oct. 2026

The three granddaughters combing every corner of Victoria’s House—familiar terrain. — Literary Hub, 26 Oct. 2026

Police arrested him again in April 2023 and started combing through the forest more systematically and exhuming mass graves. — Jefferson Kahinju Reuters, Arkansas Online, 20 Oct. 2026

Stocks, the OneLegacy nurse, realized OPOs have data that could help patients advocate for themselves, and started combing records. — ABC News, 20 Oct. 2026

Lawyers have spent years chasing down missing witnesses, litigating requests for DNA testing or combing through police files. — Samantha Melamed, ProPublica, 13 Oct. 2026

Given the prime location, everything is at your disposal from combing history tomes at Yountville Library to ticking off as many wine tastings as possible in one day. — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 8 Oct. 2026