verb (used with object)
verb (used without object)
noun
verb
-
to search for (something on the internet) using a search engine
-
to check (the credentials of someone) by searching for websites containing his or her name
Etymology
Origin of Google
First recorded in 1998; after mathematical term googol
Explanation
To google is to use an online search engine to find some piece of information. You might google your favorite author to find out what other books she's written. Searching the Internet for answers to questions, details about people, map directions, and other information is a common activity for most of us, and since the 1990s, most of us have come to use the verb google to describe it. The verb comes from the Google search engine, first active in 1997, although until about 2000 it was mostly used in the phrase "Do a google on."
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.
See Examples For:
Other co-authors on the paper included Wang, 28, as well as leaders from OpenAI, Anthropic, Google DeepMind, and Meta.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 23, 2026
Some billionaires such as Anduril co-founder Palmer Luckey, Ripple co-founder Chris Larsen and Google co-founder Sergey Brin have opposed the wealth tax proposal.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 22, 2026
“OpenAI was disrupted by DeepSeek; Google was disrupted by OpenAI,” he said.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 22, 2026
Cutting-edge AI models, such as those from US giants OpenAI and Google, were used by Wiz and other groups to uncover PHP's weak spots in August.
From Barron's ● Oct. 22, 2026
She spent a fair amount of time on Google Maps plotting, but to no avail.
From "The Serpent King" by Jeff Zentner
Anyone who has Googled a disturbing symptom and plunged down a rabbit hole of anxiety might fancifully imagine that hypochondria is an internet-spawned phenomenon.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 23, 2026
Wordle was originally created and developed by Welsh software engineer Josh Wardle in 2021 and acquired by the NYT in 2022, when it was also the most Googled word of the year.
From BBC ● May 11, 2026
I Googled “Philadelphia public radio” and found WXPN, now my gold standard.
From Slate ● Apr. 12, 2026
He Googled and called around to see how best to join others and resist.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 12, 2026
The largest bill the US Mint made was a hundred-dollar bill—he’d Googled it last night.
From "Millionaires for the Month" by Stacey McAnulty
“I started Googling it–that’s when I discovered the bad news,” he says.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 3, 2026
She explained getting the stats of individual players' careers isn't as simple as Googling it - back in the day, clubs weren't so diligent about keeping records.
From BBC ● Nov. 1, 2025
I asked him: “Do you think Googling symptoms comes from a lack of trust in medical professionals?”
From Slate ● Jul. 26, 2025
Eventually — fortunately, and unfortunately for the guy with the tattoo — a little Googling cleared things up.
From Salon ● Jun. 20, 2025
We had started our search by simply Googling his name.
From "Auggie & Me" by R. J. Palacio
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
