research
Americannoun
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research
plural
verb (used without object)
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researches,
present (3rd person singular)
-
researched,
past participle, past
-
researching
present participle
verb (used with object)
-
researches,
present (3rd person singular)
-
researched,
past participle, past
-
researching
present participle
noun
verb
Synonym Usage
See investigation.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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researchernoun
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researchistnoun
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underresearchverb (used with object)
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proresearchadjective
-
researchableadjective
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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researchsimple
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researchessimple
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have researchedperfect
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has researchedperfect
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am researchingprogressive
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are researchingprogressive
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is researchingprogressive
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have been researchingperfect progressive
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has been researchingperfect progressive
Past
-
researchedsimple
-
had researchedperfect
-
was researchingprogressive
-
were researchingprogressive
-
had been researchingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of research
First recorded in 1570–80; (verb) from Middle French recercher “to seek,” Old French, equivalent to re- re- + cercher search; (noun) from Middle French recerche
Explanation
In their spare time, teenagers LOVE doing extra research, by investigating the facts of a certain subject and studying and recording what they learn. And if you believe that, you need to do more research on the habits of teenagers. Research comes from the Old French word recercher, meaning "seek out," or "search closely." When you do research, you are searching for knowledge and facts. Although you write plenty of research papers in college, on anything from the Industrial Revolution to the meaning behind a fur-lined teacup, the term is often used when talking about science, because scientists use step-by-step research to prove what is true, or not true, in their line of work.
Vocabulary lists containing research
TEKS ELAR Academic Vocabulary List (5th-7th grades)
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Journalism
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Academic Vocabulary: Core Tier 2 Words, List 9
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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:
"In my opinion, 100%. It's just a question of when," says David Nicholson, the Chief Technology Advisor at The Futurum Group, a market research company.
From BBC ● Oct. 21, 2026
Eric Larsson, an autism-therapy expert who worked on some of that research, said the economics of the treatment provides an incentive to keep hours high.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 21, 2026
A former research engineer who worked closely with Elizabeth Holmes at Theranos says “You Can See Everything” doesn’t show, well, everything.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 20, 2026
Merz opened the event late Monday, holding an on-stage discussion with Nvidia's chief executive Jensen Huang, who praised Germany's high-end engineering firms and research institutions.
From Barron's ● Oct. 20, 2026
All were found to be fraudulent—tricks of costuming, light, accomplices, secret tools, background research, and lots of practice.
From "American Spirits" by Barb Rosenstock
The Wall Street Journal spoke to Goldin about how the company researches people’s passions and turns these into products and marketing campaigns.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 18, 2026
"The recent increases in space spending elsewhere in Europe matter," says Gabriele Piazza, an economist at the London School of Economics who researches government procurement of advanced technology.
From BBC ● Oct. 5, 2026
The company researches so-called world models, which work differently than the popular AI systems that generate text and images.
From Barron's ● Sep. 28, 2026
Your wife and her siblings are the “primary grievers,” says Joanne Cacciatore, a professor at Arizona State University who researches traumatic grief.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 24, 2026
My researches do indeed involve the interpretation of robot behavior in the light of the Three Laws of Robotics.
From "I, Robot" by Isaac Asimov
“We wanted to throw a lot of money at the problem, and as we researched it, we realized that the problem was permitting, not money.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 20, 2026
He frames his deeply researched four-hour psych eval “Musk” as the reality check we all need when the world’s richest, most cult-powerful human keeps pushing migration to Mars.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 9, 2026
He said the battery was stolen a few months later and they researched a new one, but it would have been "quite a lot of money and I couldn't afford it at the time".
From BBC ● Oct. 8, 2026
Years ago, he researched the banking industry, which he saw as ripe for disruption.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 6, 2026
Radio programmes analysed the merits of different interpretations of the same pieces, while there were always new reasons to hear, say, Mozart afresh, thanks to the selling point of newly researched performance techniques.
From "The Story of Music" by Howard Goodall
After researching your book, what have you found about people’s common understanding of Rod Serling and “The Twilight Zone” that might not be entirely accurate?
From Salon ● Oct. 10, 2026
“When we started researching and looking at other books, TV shows and movies about vampires, none of them were consistent,” Wiseman says.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 8, 2026
In researching the series, which he wrote with Samuel Bailey, McGovern decided to get a behind-the-scenes look inside real-life YOIs.
From BBC ● Oct. 7, 2026
The drug company developed a game-changing medicine that helps people lose weight and will ultimately impact a broad cross-section of industries after researching a treatment for diabetes.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 6, 2026
He ended by saying that he was looking forward to resuming a quiet life of researching and writing, with much less attention from the press.
From "Most Dangerous: Daniel Ellsberg and the Secret History of the Vietnam War" by Steve Sheinkin
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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.
