research
Americannoun
-
research
plural
verb (used without object)
-
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
-
have researchedperfect
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has researchedperfect
-
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:
The research relied entirely on human tissue and patient-derived organoids.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 20, 2026
On the other, the research will help to inform government policy.
From BBC ● Sep. 19, 2026
The job site’s research has found that for hourly employees tasked with maintenance and installation work, data centers offer a roughly 42% pay premium compared with similar jobs at other kinds of businesses.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 19, 2026
FFRDCs are government-funded, privately operated research centers that include private, non-profit think tanks and major research universities.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 19, 2026
Someone had to be at the research post on Saturday night, between when Glicken left and Swanson arrived.
From "Mountain of Fire" by Rebecca E. F. Barone
Holly now researches child criminal exploitation and the care system at the University of Sheffield.
From BBC ● Sep. 9, 2026
“For individual investors, this is a real breakthrough,” said Irene Aldridge, an engineer and former quant trader who now researches the intersection of AI and financial markets.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 6, 2026
M researches a part in a mansion that has been meticulously art-directed to resemble the house of a family who in fact never lived there.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 24, 2026
Lucy Qin, a postdoc at Georgetown University who researches privacy, pushed back against this framing: “Shorter-term fixes can band-aid the immediate problem but do not address a long-term pattern,” she said.
From Salon ● Aug. 17, 2026
By day, Evans is a kindly and now semiretired minister in the Uniting Church in Australia, who does a bit of freelance work and researches the history of nineteenth-century religious movements.
From "A Short History of Nearly Everything" by Bill Bryson
But the GLP-1s are increasingly being researched, used experimentally, and even prescribed off-label to treat a range of other conditions in which they show promise.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 18, 2026
Some administration officials privately researched Sacks’s businesses to see if the venture investor could personally profit by blocking regulations.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 17, 2026
I’ve researched the revenues of both locations and can comfortably afford to do this.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 11, 2026
That’s how Wagner found Daniel Paul, an architectural historian who researched and documented the 38-foot-tall cupola-style structure built in 1960 by Van Tassel, who ascribed it miraculous powers including antigravity, rejuvenation and time travel.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 1, 2026
If she’d looked at a map, counted her money, researched average cab fares and highways and traffic conditions, those kids would have made it.
From "The Thing About Jellyfish" by Ali Benjamin
While the Moon has numerous craters, many of which are far bigger than McGetchin, researching a crater's formation in real time can help build understanding of the Moon's geology.
From Barron's ● Sep. 17, 2026
She took some steps toward that goal, including researching programs that help first-time home buyers.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 16, 2026
Both Anthropic and OpenAI are researching how they will make sure superintelligent AI models remain aligned, but both say they don’t yet have a reliable way to do so.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 10, 2026
While researching his book he found that Mason owned land between Olive and Grand streets right next to the park, making it an appropriate memorial location.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 4, 2026
They had connections, they had ways of researching that weren’t accessible to just anyone.
From "Little Fires Everywhere" by Celeste Ng
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.
