examine
Americanverb (used with object)
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examines,
present (3rd person singular)
-
examined,
past participle, past
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examining
present participle
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to inspect or scrutinize carefully.
to examine a prospective purchase.
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to observe, test, or investigate (a person's body or any part of it), especially in order to evaluate general health or determine the cause of illness.
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to inquire into or investigate.
to examine one's motives.
- Synonyms:
- quiz
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to test the knowledge, reactions, or qualifications of (a pupil, candidate, etc.), as by questions or assigning tasks.
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to subject to legal inquisition; put to question in regard to conduct or to knowledge of facts; interrogate.
to examine a witness;
to examine a suspect.
verb
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to look at, inspect, or scrutinize carefully or in detail; investigate
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education to test the knowledge or skill of (a candidate) in (a subject or activity) by written or oral questions or by practical tests
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law to interrogate (a witness or accused person) formally on oath
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med to investigate the state of health of (a patient)
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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examinernoun
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preexaminernoun
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subexaminernoun
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superexaminernoun
-
preexamineverb (used with object)
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examinableadjective
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examinatorialadjective
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examiningadjective
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unexaminableadjective
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unexaminedadjective
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unexaminingadjective
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well-examinedadjective
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examininglyadverb
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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examinesimple
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examinessimple
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have examinedperfect
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has examinedperfect
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am examiningprogressive
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are examiningprogressive
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is examiningprogressive
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have been examiningperfect progressive
-
has been examiningperfect progressive
Past
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examinedsimple
-
had examinedperfect
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was examiningprogressive
-
were examiningprogressive
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had been examiningperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of examine
First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English, from Middle French examiner, from Latin exāmināre “to weigh, examine, test,” equivalent to exāmin- (stem of exāmen examen ) + -āre, infinitive ending
Explanation
The verb examine means to study something carefully and in great detail. You can examine a book, a painting, a person’s face and so on. Right now, you are examining the meaning of examine. Examine means to look at something very closely and usually with the purpose of making a judgment. If you go to see a doctor, the doctor will examine you to see if you are healthy. Examine can also mean “question.” When the police examine a witness, they are questioning that witness. Along these same lines, examine can also be used to mean “test.” You might examine, or test, your friend’s knowledge of biology by asking him repeated questions about that subject.
Vocabulary lists containing examine
Jim Burke's Academic Vocabulary List
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The SAT: Language of the Test, List 5
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The Language of Standardized Tests, List 3
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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:
Ben Glickman and Oyin Adedoyin examine the escalating friction between premium card issuers and the points fanatics testing their limits.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 25, 2026
With the Bennu analysis now complete, Schönbächler is looking ahead to another opportunity to examine material from the early Solar System.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 24, 2026
Crucially it will also examine how much it could cost as well as assess the chances of a bid succeeding.
From BBC ● Oct. 24, 2026
To understand why the judge ruled that way, it’s important to go back a decade and examine how the agreement was constructed.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 23, 2026
In secret he had turned to Bayona, an old friend, and asked—begged, Jaime said—to get Farmer to examine his daughter.
From "Mountains Beyond Mountains" by Tracy Kidder and Michael French
The bank’s policy board is widely expected to stand pat when it gathers next week as it examines the effects of previous hikes, including in September.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 22, 2026
The second half of “You Can See Everything” examines the conjugal nature of denial and doubt as Seyfried and Fielder begin to worry that Evans is exploiting the now-incarcerated Holmes.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 22, 2026
MarketWatch’s Aarthi Swaminathan examines the latest trends in the housing market and offers a few tips for prospective buyers.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 21, 2026
A comprehensive review by Yi Ru and colleagues examines this issue in detail, looking at how a wide range of immune cells behave throughout the wound healing process.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 10, 2026
He examines a copy of Streeters Precious Stones and Gems; drawings of cleavage panes; trigonometric charts used for faceting.
From "All the Light We Cannot See" by Anthony Doerr
However, because those studies examined large collections of cells together, scientists could not fully explain how cancer cells move from one category to the other.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 25, 2026
It looks at this rarely examined aspect of his career by considering the loss of his children and the environmental concerns of an island under colonial rule.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 25, 2026
To investigate Bennu's origins, the ETH Zurich researchers examined isotopes of three elements: iron, titanium, and chromium.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 24, 2026
To investigate this remarkable escape strategy, researchers filmed dwarf reedsnakes from several angles and carefully examined how different parts of their bodies moved during rolling.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 24, 2026
At last she sent the maids away and examined herself in the mirror.
From "Secrets at Sea" by Richard Peck
Dr Matthew Perks at Newcastle University and his colleagues are monitoring the movement of the nurdles and examining how the pellets may deteriorate in water.
From BBC ● Oct. 26, 2026
Philippine police are examining materials reportedly discovered by Meghan’s half-brother, Thomas Markle Jr., while clearing out their father’s former home in Cebu.
From Salon ● Oct. 25, 2026
By examining nearly half a million individual cancer cells, researchers identified genetic changes that could reveal new ways to fight one of the deadliest forms of cancer.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 25, 2026
The board has also played an important role in helping Nasdaq determine which measures to track when examining AI’s effectiveness.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 23, 2026
I re-read the postcard, examining each sentence for hidden messages, but nothing stands out.
From "South of Somewhere" by Kalena Miller
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
