thorough

[thur-oh, thuhr-oh]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR thorough ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

executed without negligence or omissions: a thorough search.

complete; perfect; utter: thorough enjoyment.

extremely attentive to accuracy and detail; painstaking: a thorough worker; a thorough analysis.

having full command or mastery of an art, talent, etc.: a thorough actress.

extending or passing through.

adverb, preposition

Archaic. through.

noun

(initial capital letter) English History. the administrative policies of the Earl of Stafford and Archbishop Laud during the reign of Charles I: so called because they were uncompromisingly carried out.

Origin of thorough

before 900; Middle English (preposition and adv.); Old English thuruh, variant of thurh through

Related formsthor·ough·ly, adverbthor·ough·ness, nounqua·si-thor·ough, adjectivequa·si-thor·ough·ly, adverbsu·per·thor·ough, adjectivesu·per·thor·ough·ly, adverbsu·per·thor·ough·ness, nounun·thor·ough, adjectiveun·thor·ough·ly, adverbun·thor·ough·ness, noun

Synonyms for thorough

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR thorough ON THESAURUS.COM

1. unqualified, total.

Antonyms for thorough

1. partial.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for thorough

detailed, full, complete, profound, comprehensive, accurate, intensive, painstaking, exhaustive, careful, meticulous, absolute, arrant, consummate, exact, extreme, finished, ingrained, out-and-out, thoroughly

Examples from the Web for thorough

Contemporary Examples of thorough

The result was a thorough shellacking of the Democratic party from top to bottom.
The Progressives’ War on Suburbia
Joel Kotkin
November 16, 2014
Cammue, whose agency has now performed a thorough assessment of the current cremation process at Boystown, is extremely concerned.
Rage Against the Ebola Crematorium
Abby Haglage
November 11, 2014
In an attempt to offer up a thorough document, Brown manages to capture a wide array of people on camera.
Deepwater Horizon: Life Drowning in Oil
Samuel Fragoso
November 2, 2014
The disease is spread via bodily fluids, necesitating strict isolation for the patients and thorough decontamination.
Two American Ebola Patients Coming Home to U.S. for Treatment
Abby Haglage
August 1, 2014
Of course, Wolfe dropped acid for the sake of good, thorough journalism.
Five Journalists Who Did Drugs for Work
Emily Shire
June 4, 2014

Historical Examples of thorough

This time the Romans decided to be thorough in their work of destruction.
Ancient Man
Hendrik Willem van Loon
A thorough examination should be regularly made, and I will promote it.
United States Presidents' Inaugural Speeches
Various
Neither is politeness at all inconsistent with thorough familiarity.
Weighed and Wanting
George MacDonald
The Metanoia, the re-directing of my thought, was a thorough and basic change.
The Conquest of Fear
Basil King
This man had been in the service a long time, and was a thorough man-of-war's man.
Ned Myers
James Fenimore Cooper

British Dictionary definitions for thorough

thorough

adjective

carried out completely and carefullya thorough search

(prenominal) uttera thorough bore

painstakingly carefulmy work is thorough

Derived Formsthoroughly, adverbthoroughness, noun

Word Origin for thorough

Old English thurh; related to Old Frisian thruch, Old Saxon thuru, Old High German duruh; see through

Thorough

noun

thoroughgoing policy, as adopted in England by Strafford and Laud during the reign of Charles I

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for thorough

adj.

late 15c., adjectival use of Old English þuruh (adv.) "from end to end, from side to side," stressed variant of þurh (adv., prep.); see through. Related: thoroughly (c.1300).