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• survey
  survey

  verb (used with object)

  to take a general or comprehensive view of or appraise, as a situation, area of study, etc.
• survey.
  survey.

  abbreviation

  surveying.

survey

¹ American  

[ser-vey, sur-vey, ser-vey] / sərˈveɪ, ˈsɜr veɪ, sərˈveɪ /

verb (used with object)

• surveys,
  present (3rd person singular)
• surveyed,
  past participle,  past
• surveying
  present participle

1. to take a general or comprehensive view of or appraise, as a situation, area of study, etc.

2. to view in detail, especially to inspect, examine, or appraise formally or officially in order to ascertain condition, value, etc.

3. to conduct a survey of or among.

   to survey TV viewers.

4. to determine the exact form, boundaries, position, extent, etc., of (a tract of land, section of a country, etc.) by linear and angular measurements and the application of the principles of geometry and trigonometry.

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verb (used without object)

• surveys,
  present (3rd person singular)
• surveyed,
  past participle,  past
• surveying
  present participle

1. to survey land; practice surveying.

noun

• surveys
  plural

1. an act or instance of surveying or of taking a comprehensive view of something.

   The course is a survey of Italian painting.

2. a formal or official examination of the particulars of something, made in order to ascertain condition, character, etc.

3. a statement or description embodying the result of this.

   They presented their survey to the board of directors.

4. a sampling, or partial collection, of facts, figures, or opinions taken and used to approximate or indicate what a complete collection and analysis might reveal.

   The survey showed the percentage of the population that planned to vote.

5. the act of determining the exact form, boundaries, position, etc., as of a tract of land or section of a country, by linear measurements, angular measurements, etc.

6. the plan or description resulting from such an operation.

7. an agency for making determinations.

   U.S. Geological Survey.

survey. ² American  

abbreviation

1. surveying.

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survey British  

verb

1. (tr) to view or consider in a comprehensive or general way

   to survey the situation

2. (tr) to examine carefully, as or as if to appraise value

   to survey oneself in a mirror

3. to plot a detailed map of (an area of land) by measuring or calculating distances and height

4. to inspect a building to determine its condition and value

5. to examine a vessel thoroughly in order to determine its seaworthiness

6. (tr) to run a statistical survey on (incomes, opinions, etc)

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noun

1. a comprehensive or general view

   a survey of English literature

2. a critical, detailed, and formal inspection

   a survey of the nation's hospitals

3. an inspection of a building to determine its condition and value

4. a report incorporating the results of such an inspection

5. 1. a body of surveyors

   2. an area surveyed

6. statistics a random sample

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• presurvey
  noun
• self-survey
  noun
• presurvey
  verb (used with object)
• self-surveyed
  adjective
• surveyable
  adjective
• unsurveyable
  adjective
• unsurveyed
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• surveys
  plural

Participles

• surveying
  present
• surveyed
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• survey
  simple
• surveys
  simple
• have surveyed
  perfect
• has surveyed
  perfect
• am surveying
  progressive
• are surveying
  progressive
• is surveying
  progressive
• have been surveying
  perfect progressive
• has been surveying
  perfect progressive

Past

• surveyed
  simple
• had surveyed
  perfect
• was surveying
  progressive
• were surveying
  progressive
• had been surveying
  perfect progressive

Future

• will survey
  simple
• will have surveyed
  perfect
• will be surveying
  progressive
• will have been surveying
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of survey

First recorded in 1425–75; late Middle English surveien (verb), from Anglo-French surveier, Middle French surv(e)ier, surveoir “to oversee,” from sur- sur- ¹ + v(e)ier “to see” (from Latin vidēre; cf. video ( def. ), vision ( def. ))

Explanation

The verb survey means to look something over. When you buy your first home, it's a pleasure to stand on the porch and survey your property. Survey has several meanings, all of which come from Medieval Latin and Anglo words for looking over. As a noun, survey can mean a detailed study of something, but it also means a short summary with a broad view. A survey course gives an overview of a particular subject area, but doesn't make you an expert. Survey is also a verb. If you survey an area hit by an earthquake, you look closely at it to measure the damage.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

survey survey. surveys surveyed surveying

But the average length of a ballplayer’s career is about five years, according to an academic survey published in 2011.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 21, 2026

The Supreme Court has directed states to prevent the blockage of elephant corridors -- routes used by herds to move between rapidly shrinking habitats -- and ordered a survey to identify obstructions along those routes.

From Barron's ● Aug. 21, 2026

Ancient oak and beech trees, rare heathland and even wetland have been devastated by the recent fire that swept through the New Forest, a survey has found.

From BBC ● Aug. 21, 2026

Plus, a new Gallup survey finds AI ad skepticism hits hardest among Gen Z.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 19, 2026

Working first with his colleague Eleanor Helin and later with his wife, Carolyn, and associate David Levy, Shoemaker began a systematic survey of the inner solar system.

From "A Short History of Nearly Everything" by Bill Bryson

“The real test of Jewish voting intentions is not contained in our survey. It would be in the state of Florida,” said David Harris, chief executive of the AJC, a nonpartisan advocacy organization.

From Washington Post ● Dec. 12, 2019

“But all these assumptions can be refuted by the results of this survey. The survey results clearly show that veiled women are often harassed, even during the day.”

From The Guardian ● Jul. 17, 2019

“The prevailing view among publics around the world is that the United States remains the top global economic power, according to a new Pew Research Center survey. “

From Washington Times ● Jul. 13, 2017

Hugi's cabin. of the Aar. in the winter. the Rosenlaui. boring. glacier wells. caves of the Viescher. capillary fissures. formation of crevasses. sundials. topographical survey. stratification of neve. new work.

From Louis Agassiz: His Life and Correspondence by Louis Agassiz

Dyster, Dr. —letters to: —scientific Calvinism. —introduction to Kingsley and Maurice. —refuses Edinburgh chair: coast survey. —approaching marriage. —popular lectures. —man not a rational animal in his parental capacity.

From Life and Letters of Thomas Henry Huxley — Volume 3 by Leonard Huxley

These data come on top of detailed second-quarter German GDP data on Tuesday and French GDP data on Friday, as well as a number of sentiment surveys.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 21, 2026

The change is dramatic: ship-based surveys in the region did not record a single humpback whale sighting there until 2006.

From BBC ● Aug. 20, 2026

The Pew Research Center released a report in 2024 showing that these so-called opt-in surveys did a particularly bad job of capturing the attitudes of adults under 30 and Latino adults.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 18, 2026

In the organization’s surveys, about 70 percent of parents cite experiencing financial strain, with little relief in sight.

From Salon ● Aug. 18, 2026

And stayed silent for some time, even while she did another of her tree-climbing surveys of the surrounding area.

From "Code Name Verity" by Elizabeth Wein

To compile our expansive list we surveyed more than 200 bookish luminaries — along with a few zealous book club members.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 18, 2026

BCG surveyed the top 25 global companies by market cap across 11 major industries, including healthcare, financial services and energy, for a total sample of 275 companies.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026

Roughly one out of every four of the voters surveyed on those two measures said they were undecided.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 14, 2026

In 2023, about 20% of Americans surveyed told the Commonwealth Fund that they or a family member had dealt with a prior-authorization denial or a claim denial in the previous year.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 13, 2026

When the new king first surveyed the land that was soon to be his, he must have felt resentment to be ruler of such a place.

From "When the Sea Turned to Silver" by Grace Lin

Pollsters typically weigh the responses they receive — sometimes amplifying the voices of respondents from a particular ethnic group, for example — to ensure that the results are representative of the population they are surveying.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 18, 2026

One more thing: For an upcoming project, I’m surveying Gen Z–ers to better understand their investing behaviors.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 18, 2026

It does this by surveying Americans once a year on how much of their spending goes to food, rent, entertainment and other categories.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 12, 2026

FireTracking's cameras are currently surveying a million hectares, mainly in France.

From BBC ● Aug. 4, 2026

Four were surveying the general floor space, but another three were fixed.

From "Artemis Fowl" by Eoin Colfer

Related Words

• assess
• canvass
• check
• check out
• estimate
• evaluate
• examine
• inspect
• look over
• observe
• overlook
• oversee
• review
• scan
• supervise