exploratory
Americanadjective
-
pertaining to or concerned with exploration.
an exploratory operation.
-
inclined to make explorations.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of exploratory
First recorded in 1425–75; late Middle English word from Latin word explōrātōrius. See exploration, -ory 1
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Exploratory spacecraft can take 10 years or more to develop and require the assemblage of teams of trained engineers, designers, and other professionals.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 9, 2025
Exploratory behavior is one of the fundamental personality traits of animals -- and these traits influence their probability of survival, among other things.
From Science Daily • Apr. 25, 2024
Exploratory drilling is expensive and uncertain, and industry leaders say government backing is required to make that initial phase manageable for companies.
From Seattle Times • Aug. 13, 2023
Indeed, the agency even supports some funding mechanisms that are specially designed to encourage research that is high-risk and high-reward, the most prominent being the Early-concept Grants for Exploratory Research program, or EAGER.
From Salon • May 3, 2022
Exploratory telegraphy seems likely to claim a position in the twentieth century economics of mining, its particular rôle being to aid in the determination of the "strike" of mineral-bearing lodes.
From Twentieth Century Inventions A Forecast by Sutherland, George
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
