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Which of these is a report?

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report

American  

[ri-pawrt, -pohrt] / rɪˈpɔrt, -ˈpoʊrt /

noun

• reports
  plural

1. an account or statement describing in detail an event, situation, or the like, usually as the result of observation, inquiry, etc..

   a report on the peace conference;

   a medical report on the patient.

   Synonyms:

   story, description

2. a statement or announcement.

   Synonyms:

   dispatch, bulletin

3. a widely circulated statement or item of news; rumor; gossip.

4. an account of a speech, debate, meeting, etc., especially as taken down for publication.

5. a loud noise, as from an explosion.

   the report of a distant cannon.

   Synonyms:

   detonation, shot

6. a statement of a student's grades, level of achievement, or academic standing for or during a prescribed period of time.

7. Computers. output, especially printed, containing organized information.

8. a statement of a judicial opinion or decision, or of a case argued and determined in a court of justice.

9. Law. reports, a collection of adjudications.

10. repute; reputation; fame.

    a man of bad report.

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verb (used with object)

• reports,
  present (3rd person singular)
• reported,
  past participle,  past
• reporting
  present participle

1. to carry and repeat, as an answer or message; repeat, as what one has heard.

   Synonyms:

   relay

2. to relate, as what has been learned by observation or investigation.

   Synonyms:

   relay

3. to give or render a formal account or statement of.

   to report a deficit.

4. to send back (a bill, amendment, etc.) to a legislative body with a formal report outlining findings and recommendations (often followed byout ).

   The committee reported out the bill.

5. to make a charge against (a person), as to a superior.

   I intend to report him to the dean for cheating.

   Synonyms:

   accuse

6. to make known the presence, condition, or whereabouts of.

   to report a ship missing.

7. to present (oneself ) to a person in authority, as in accordance with requirements.

8. to take down (a speech, lecture, etc.) in writing.

9. to write an account of (an event, situation, etc.), as for publication in a newspaper.

10. to relate or tell.

    Synonyms:

    repeat, detail, describe, recount, rehearse, narrate

verb (used without object)

• reports,
  present (3rd person singular)
• reported,
  past participle,  past
• reporting
  present participle

1. to prepare, make, or submit a report of something observed, investigated, or the like.

2. to serve or work as a reporter, as for a newspaper.

3. to make one's condition or whereabouts known, as to a person in authority.

   to report sick.

4. to present oneself duly, as at a place.

   to report to Room 101.

idioms

1. on report, (of personnel) under restriction pending disciplinary action.

report British  

/ rɪˈpɔːt /

noun

1. an account prepared for the benefit of others, esp one that provides information obtained through investigation and published in a newspaper or broadcast

2. a statement made widely known; rumour

   according to report, he is not dead

3. an account of the deliberations of a committee, body, etc

   a report of parliamentary proceedings

4. a statement on the progress, academic achievement, etc, of each child in a school, written by teachers and sent to the parents or guardian annually or each term

5. a written account of a case decided at law, giving the main points of the argument on each side, the court's findings, and the decision reached

6. comment on a person's character or actions; reputation

   he is of good report here

7. a sharp loud noise, esp one made by a gun

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verb

1. to give an account (of); describe

2. to give an account of the results of an investigation (into)

   to report on housing conditions

3. (of a committee, legislative body, etc) to make a formal report on (a bill)

4. (tr) to complain about (a person), esp to a superior

   I'll report you to the teacher

5. (tr) to reveal information about (a fugitive, escaped prisoner, etc) esp concerning his whereabouts

6. (intr) to present oneself or be present at an appointed place or for a specific purpose

   report to the manager's office

7. (intr) to say or show that one is (in a certain state)

   to report fit

8. to be responsible to and under the authority of

   the plant manager reports to the production controller

9. (intr) to act as a reporter for a newspaper or for radio or television

10. law to take down in writing details of (the proceedings of a court of law) as a record or for publication

Usage

What is a basic definition of report? A report is a detailed account of something based on observation and research. Report is also used to mean to relay information or to appear at a destination as ordered. The word report has many other senses as a noun and a verb. A report is a paper, article, announcement, or similar account that contains detailed information that someone has gathered through observation, study, or other research. Sometimes, another noun is used with report to specify what the report is about. For example, students often write book reports in school in which they analyze books they have read.

• Real-life examples: Businesses often create budget reports so they can figure out how much money they have to spend. Scientists compile scientific reports in which they present the results of experiments. Sports journalists often compile injury reports that list all of the players who will miss games due to injuries.
• Used in a sentence: I listened to the weather report on the news to see if I needed to bring an umbrella. 

As a verb, report means to repeat or relay information that a person has heard from another source or has gathered themselves. People who report things (such as at a news agency) are called reporters.

• Real-life examples: A journalist’s job is to report information to the public. A spy’s job is to gather secret information and report it to their boss. Scientists will report things they have learned to scientific journals or to the news media.
• Used in a sentence: The tabloid magazine reported sightings of Bigfoot in the woods. 

Report is also used to mean to go to a specific place because you were ordered to.

• Used in a sentence: General Harris ordered the recruits to report to basic training in the morning.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• prereport
  noun
• subreport
  noun
• overreport
  verb
• nonreportable
  adjective
• nonreported
  adjective
• quasi-reported
  adjective
• reportable
  adjective
• unreportable
  adjective
• unreported
  adjective
• well-reported
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• reports
  plural

Participles

• reporting
  present
• reported
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• report
  simple
• reports
  simple
• have reported
  perfect
• has reported
  perfect
• am reporting
  progressive
• are reporting
  progressive
• is reporting
  progressive
• have been reporting
  perfect progressive
• has been reporting
  perfect progressive

Past

• reported
  simple
• had reported
  perfect
• was reporting
  progressive
• were reporting
  progressive
• had been reporting
  perfect progressive

Future

• will report
  simple
• will have reported
  perfect
• will be reporting
  progressive
• will have been reporting
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of report

First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English verb reporten, from Middle French reporter, Old French, from Latin reportāre “to carry back,” equivalent to re- re- + portāre “to carry” ( see port ⁵)

Explanation

When you report something, you tell what happened. After giving the details of your groundbreaking news story, you might end by saying, “...reporting live from Washington, D.C.” In addition to the action of telling, what gets told is also called a report. Your report on annual snowfall in New Mexico was brief but informative. Report also applies to calling the police or other authorities. You might not like the way your neighbor trims his poodle, but that doesn't mean you should report him for animal abuse.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

report reports reported reporting

It was a slow, late-summer session for Wall Street—the third-lightest trading volume day of 2026—with many gearing up for Nvidia’s report due after the closing bell.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 26, 2026

BBC North West Tonight's Molly Brewer was presenting her report when Kay joined her on screen.

From BBC ● Aug. 26, 2026

At the one-year mark of the restrictions, a Wine Institute report said U.S. wine exports totaled $805 million in 2025, down 35% from 2024.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 26, 2026

“The details of the report looked strong with an upward revision in real consumer spending,” said Scott Anderson, chief U.S. economist at BMO Capital Markets.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 26, 2026

Clearly, Door had given her the full report.

From "Boy 2.0" by Tracey Baptiste

WSJ Leadership Institute’s Katie Deighton reports on a new way to optimize.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 26, 2026

The company is also staring down lawsuits from people and school districts that predated the settlement and are set to go to trial soon, the Times reports.

From Slate ● Aug. 26, 2026

Senior coroner Dr Julian Morris said on Wednesday: "The various reports have given me reason to suspect that Professor Arday died an unnatural death 12 days ago."

From BBC ● Aug. 26, 2026

Malaysia's foreign ministry however said its embassy in Kathmandu has received reports from travel agencies suggesting they had lost contact with 11 Malaysian nationals believed to be in the Rasuwa district.

From Barron's ● Aug. 26, 2026

This chess magazine contained theoretical articles and reports on the latest games from around the world, mostly games involving players from the Soviet Union.

From "Endgame" by Frank Brady

HP reported third-quarter revenue growth of nearly 13% to $15.68 billion, beating analyst expectations.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 26, 2026

Nepal's foreign minister earlier said an earthquake was reported on the Tibet-Nepal border shortly before the landslide, suggesting it may have triggered the disaster.

From BBC ● Aug. 26, 2026

Investors were impressed by Salesforce’s artificial-intelligence progress in the latest quarter as the software giant on Wednesday reported an earnings beat driven by growing demand for the company’s agentic-AI tools.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 26, 2026

The comedian and musician will no longer be performing at the Monterey Jazz Festival, the San Francisco Chronicle reported Tuesday.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 26, 2026

Although colony losses occurred steadily through 2020, there were several years in which beekeepers reported sustainable colonies and it looked as though bees might have escaped danger.

From "The First State of Being" by Erin Entrada Kelly

After years of asking investors to take its AI strategy on faith, Microsoft stands out among tech giants for the opacity of its financial reporting.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 26, 2026

It said soldiers eventually stopped Sukkot and escorted his group out of Madama after reporting the incident to their commanders.

From BBC ● Aug. 26, 2026

In France, farmers are bracing for their smallest corn crop since 1980, and winegrowers are reporting some of the earliest harvests on record.

From Barron's ● Aug. 26, 2026

Bauer pointed to the John Birch Society, an organization that engaged in paranoia reporting in the 1960s.

From Salon ● Aug. 26, 2026

Men run in and out, reporting their finds.

From "Before We Were Free" by Julia Alvarez

Related Words

• address
• announcement
• article
• communique
• description
• detail
• dispatch
• information
• message
• news
• note
• opinion
• paper
• picture
• record
• release
• statement
• summary
• word