interrogate
Americanverb (used with object)
-
to ask questions of (a person), sometimes to seek answers or information that the person questioned considers personal or secret.
- Synonyms:
- query
-
to examine by questions; question formally.
The police captain interrogated the suspect.
-
to analyze (an idea or belief), especially by thoroughly and dispassionately questioning its underlying assumptions.
The antiwork movement seeks to interrogate the concept of work as we know it today.
verb (used without object)
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of interrogate
First recorded in 1475–85; from Latin interrogātus, past participle of interrogāre “to question, examine,” equivalent to inter- “between, among, together” + rogā(re) “to ask” + -tus past participle suffix; see inter-
Explanation
To interrogate is to ask someone a bunch of questions. Usually, it’s the police, FBI, or other law-enforcement officials who interrogate suspects, but your father-in-law may interrogate you about your career plans. Interrogate comes from the Latin prefix inter-, “between” added to the Latin verb rogare, “to ask.” To interrogate someone is not just asking a few polite questions over a cup of tea. When you interrogate someone there is usually a method to the questioning with a specific mission in mind, like determining a criminal's motive or where she stashed the loot. Your college entrance interview may feel like an interrogation, but their mission is really just to get to know you.
Vocabulary lists containing interrogate
"The Odyssey" by Homer, Books 1–7
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For Grilled Cheese Day, Vocab with a Twist
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Instead of "Said": Words for Asking and Offering
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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.
Analysts told AFP that US government officials and lawmakers are likely to interrogate Cheng on the KMT's position on China and its decision to slash the government's special defence budget.
From Barron's • Jun. 1, 2026
Hansen would then make a dramatic entrance and interrogate the men, who would often stammer and bumble through the encounter before leaving.
From Los Angeles Times • May 27, 2026
"We are left to speculate some, as our ability to interrogate insulators stops a little," explained Dean -- their expertise is in transport measurements, and insulators don't transport a current.
From Science Daily • Feb. 5, 2026
With such blatant motives, the press can either interrogate this relationship or help legitimize it.
From Salon • Jan. 5, 2026
In two years, astonishingly, Mendel had produced a set of reagents that would allow him to interrogate some of the most important features of heredity.
From "The Gene" by Siddhartha Mukherjee
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.
