scrutiny
Americannoun
plural
scrutinies-
a searching examination or investigation; minute inquiry.
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surveillance; close and continuous watching or guarding.
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a close and searching look.
noun
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close or minute examination
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a searching look
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(in the early Christian Church) a formal testing that catechumens had to undergo before being baptized
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a similar examination of candidates for holy orders
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Related Words
See examination.
Other Word Forms
- nonscrutiny noun
- rescrutiny noun
- self-scrutiny noun
Etymology
Origin of scrutiny
First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English, from Latin scrūtinium “a search, inquiry, investigation,” derivative of scrūtārī “to search thoroughly”
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.
The relationship between England and the counties has come under scrutiny following this winter's Ashes defeat and England and Wales Cricket Board managing director Rob Key has spoken about wanting to improve relations.
From BBC • Apr. 2, 2026
The justices sent the case back to the lower courts with instructions to apply more rigorous scrutiny to the law.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 31, 2026
This kind of “viewpoint discrimination,” Gorsuch concluded, is “presumptively unconstitutional,” and must survive strict scrutiny, meaning it is “narrowly tailored to serve compelling state interests.”
From Slate • Mar. 31, 2026
Carney, an anglophone who grew up in western Canada, notably laboured to improve his French before running for prime minister last year, and his French ability was the subject of some scrutiny.
From BBC • Mar. 31, 2026
Technical academies are well represented, most of them from the for-profit sector that has been under scrutiny in recent years because students too often emerge with tens of thousands of dollars of debt—but not jobs.
From "Drama High" by Michael Sokolove
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.
