as in exploratory
Related Words
Relevance
Dissimilar Words
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of investigative
Tips and purported ransom notes flooded in but no investigative breaks.
—
Ethan Beck The Washington Post, Arkansas Online, 27 Mar. 2026
There wasn't enough to bring charges 40 years ago, but with developments in technology and investigative genealogy, the case was reopened in 2025, according to Lawrenceville Police.
—Irene Wright, USA Today, 25 Mar. 2026
An award-winning WCPO investigative reporter will leave the ABC news affiliate after 13 years.
—Bebe Hodges, Cincinnati Enquirer, 25 Mar. 2026
For Bujès, Poitras embodies the investigative spirit of contemporary documentary filmmaking.
—Lise Pedersen, Variety, 25 Mar. 2026
The 12 arrests relate to an allegedly corrupt contract to provide health and well-being services to police officers, the National Prosecuting Authority’s anti-corruption investigative unit said in a statement.
—Mogomotsi Magome, Los Angeles Times, 25 Mar. 2026
During an appeal last year of his indictment by a Haitian investigative judge, Badio accused Haiti’s judicial police of missing security lapses in the president’s detail.
—Jacqueline Charles, Miami Herald, 24 Mar. 2026
Eva Wen is an investigative data journalist.
—Eva Wen, jsonline.com, 24 Mar. 2026
Because the law prohibits sharing confidential investigative data outside of law enforcement, this new unit risks settling cases that are part of much larger, pending investigations.
—Summer Stephan, San Diego Union-Tribune, 23 Mar. 2026
Ethan Beck The Washington Post, Arkansas Online, 27 Mar. 2026
There wasn't enough to bring charges 40 years ago, but with developments in technology and investigative genealogy, the case was reopened in 2025, according to Lawrenceville Police.
—Irene Wright, USA Today, 25 Mar. 2026
An award-winning WCPO investigative reporter will leave the ABC news affiliate after 13 years.
—Bebe Hodges, Cincinnati Enquirer, 25 Mar. 2026
For Bujès, Poitras embodies the investigative spirit of contemporary documentary filmmaking.
—Lise Pedersen, Variety, 25 Mar. 2026
The 12 arrests relate to an allegedly corrupt contract to provide health and well-being services to police officers, the National Prosecuting Authority’s anti-corruption investigative unit said in a statement.
—Mogomotsi Magome, Los Angeles Times, 25 Mar. 2026
During an appeal last year of his indictment by a Haitian investigative judge, Badio accused Haiti’s judicial police of missing security lapses in the president’s detail.
—Jacqueline Charles, Miami Herald, 24 Mar. 2026
Eva Wen is an investigative data journalist.
—Eva Wen, jsonline.com, 24 Mar. 2026
Because the law prohibits sharing confidential investigative data outside of law enforcement, this new unit risks settling cases that are part of much larger, pending investigations.
—Summer Stephan, San Diego Union-Tribune, 23 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for investigative
Adjective
-
And a diverse array of propulsion systems is essential to meet a broad spectrum of scientific, commercial and exploratory goals.—
Lee Billings,
Scientific American,
18 Mar. 2026
-
The brain as a whole becomes more chaotic, reflecting the injection of exploratory variance and potential solution pathways into its behavior.—
Conor Feehly,
Big Think,
10 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
This was the fallacy that led to the rise of elegant, beautiful, and compelling scenarios — grand unification, supersymmetry, extra dimensions, and string theory — whose predictions simply don’t appear to match experimental reality in any measurable way.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
1 Apr. 2026
-
This year’s Persistence of Vision Award celebrates experimental filmmaker and poet Lynne Sachs.—
Ryan Lattanzio,
IndieWire,
1 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
The mission is the latest potential application for Blue Origin's developmental Blue Ring satellite, a spacecraft platform designed to refuel, transport and host smaller satellites for missions in Earth orbit and beyond.—
Eric Lagatta,
USA Today,
27 Mar. 2026
-
For example, this can include speech-sound disorders and developmental language disorders, in addition to children who are nonverbal or have hearing impairments.—
Lina Ruiz,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
26 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
This request is denied since these holes in the factual record, where defendants hold the pertinent backup evidence—should such evidence exist—are actually probative in assessing the reliability and accuracy, or lack thereof, of other representations by defendants about their actions more broadly.—
New York Times,
New York Times,
2 Dec. 2025
-
Perhaps there is no more probative example of this when the current president would not rule out using American military force to take Greenland and/or the Panama Canal.—
Letters to the Editor,
Orlando Sentinel,
29 Jan. 2025
Adjective
-
According to a preliminary investigation, the suspect approached the victims and asked for their gang affiliation before producing a firearm and opening fire.—
Tim Fang,
CBS News,
26 Mar. 2026
-
Separately, a Cal Fire task force has issued preliminary recommendations in the wake of the inferno.—
Joe Rubin,
Sacbee.com,
26 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Investigative.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/investigative. Accessed 3 Apr. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
