as in experimental
done or created to find something or to learn more about something
exploratory drilling for oil
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Recent Examples of exploratory
In recent years, Amazon’s assumption of the Thursday Night Football package and exploratory nibbles from the likes of YouTube have poured billions of bonus bucks into the league’s coffers.
—
Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 11 May 2026
The Vikings brought free-agent receiver Jauan Jennings in for some exploratory sessions, and that signing remains a possibility.
—Alec Lewis, New York Times, 4 May 2026
After a two-month exploratory tour, Hamilton, 61, chose to run as a Democrat rather than an independent to avoid splitting votes.
—Hannah Wise, Kansas City Star, 30 Apr. 2026
The Pentagon announced the initial, exploratory contracts with Google, OpenAI, Anthropic and xAI in July.
—Jared Perlo, NBC news, 29 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for exploratory
Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 11 May 2026
The Vikings brought free-agent receiver Jauan Jennings in for some exploratory sessions, and that signing remains a possibility.
—Alec Lewis, New York Times, 4 May 2026
After a two-month exploratory tour, Hamilton, 61, chose to run as a Democrat rather than an independent to avoid splitting votes.
—Hannah Wise, Kansas City Star, 30 Apr. 2026
The Pentagon announced the initial, exploratory contracts with Google, OpenAI, Anthropic and xAI in July.
—Jared Perlo, NBC news, 29 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for exploratory
Recent Examples of Synonyms for exploratory
Adjective
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Joining Busta on this year’s line-up of speakers, panelists, and songwriting-camp participants are the experimental R&B vocalist serpentwithfeet, Flatbush Zombies‘ Erick the Architect, and Brooklyn indie act Pom Pom Squad, plus 200 or so other writers, producers, and performers.—
Brian Hiatt,
Rolling Stone,
20 May 2026
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As part of the agreement, Incyte’s proprietary experimental data will be used to train Genesis’s foundation model to increase its capabilities.—
Amy Feldman,
Forbes.com,
20 May 2026
Adjective
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Its platform is used by hundreds of correctional and public safety agencies across the country, offering tools to organize, analyze, and interpret communications data in support of investigative operations.—
Walter Pavlo,
Forbes.com,
22 May 2026
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Complementing this perspective, vet investigative reporter, writer and doc maker Caco Barcellos will lecture about storytelling and journalistic responsibility.—
Marcelo Cajueiro,
Variety,
22 May 2026
Adjective
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Out of these theories, the last seemed the most speculative, personal, and, therefore, pertinent.—
Weike Wang,
New Yorker,
17 May 2026
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Although in-hand images aren’t yet available, a speculative mock-up was provided which is said to accurately depict the upcoming release.—
Riley Jones,
Footwear News,
16 May 2026
Adjective
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Each experience builds resilience and encourages you to get curious rather than be tentative.—
Heather Kelly,
Forbes.com,
18 May 2026
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The University of California and AFSCME Local 3299 reached a last-minute tentative deal hours before more than 40,000 workers were set to strike across 10 campuses.—
Sacbee.com,
Sacbee.com,
15 May 2026
Adjective
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According to a preliminary investigation, four suspects wearing hoodies and gloves used hammers to smash a display case and stole jewelry.—
Tim Fang,
CBS News,
14 May 2026
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Outside of a track and field preliminary meet at Yorba Linda High on Saturday, an anti-transgender advocacy group called Save Girls’ Sports organized a protest against California policies that allow transgender athletes to compete based on their gender identity.—
Marisa Ingemi,
Los Angeles Times,
14 May 2026
Adjective
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Early explorations of the theme included self-portraits EXPORT made in male drag, as well as forays in poetry and theoretical feminist texts.—
News Desk,
Artforum,
15 May 2026
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But the new one is no longer theoretical.—
Ingmar Rentzhog,
Forbes.com,
15 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Exploratory.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/exploratory. Accessed 23 May. 2026.
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