research
Americannoun
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research
plural
verb (used without object)
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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
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researchableadjective
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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researchsimple
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researchessimple
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have researchedperfect
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has researchedperfect
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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
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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:
I removed the name of the crypto platform and your personal bank, but I did some cursory research on the platform in question.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 14, 2026
The NFL and helmet makers invested tens of millions of dollars into research, and independent labs began ranking helmets on their level of protection.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 13, 2026
The Systemiq research estimates that roughly a third of Himalayan glacier melt is driven by black carbon, much of it originating from brick kilns in the plains.
From BBC ● Sep. 13, 2026
Government research and development should treat this as a safety priority, and so should AI labs.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 13, 2026
He had a warm, sleepy skunk kit in a pouch around his neck, and he had a boy—maybe even a friend—visiting his room, waiting to research skunks with him.
From "A Boy Called Bat" by Elana K. Arnold
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
Mia village emerged in 1966 after the first blind fortune-teller settled there, according to the Seongbuk Cultural Centre, which researches the district's history.
From Barron's ● Aug. 13, 2026
To compare YouTube's video recommendations before and after the act came into force the CCDH, a non-profit organisation that researches online harms, created a profile representing a 13-year-old girl in the UK.
From BBC ● Jul. 13, 2026
Dennis Culhane, a University of Pennsylvania professor who researches homelessness and served as an L.A.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 8, 2026
Boyle and Newton devoted an enormous amount of effort to alchemical researches.
From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton
By graduation in 2011, she had finished seven internships, researched case studies in Hungary and Poland, and raised $500,000 for a nonprofit she co-founded.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 12, 2026
I’ve researched the revenues of both locations and can comfortably afford to do this.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 11, 2026
The source music, meticulously researched by Hitchcock’s team, is equally memorable.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 4, 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
We had met in the United States as he had researched the Nation of Islam for his book, Black Nationalism.
From "The Autobiography of Malcolm X" by Alex Malcolm X;Hailey
Part of that work involves researching which coral species are able to better withstand rapidly warming oceans as a result of human-caused climate change.
From Barron's ● Sep. 10, 2026
Heder would work for two years on researching and developing the project with Heumann, interviewing dozens of people involved in the actual Carter-era protest.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 9, 2026
“It’s not someone sitting there researching people, they’re using AI to scrape social-media accounts and publicly available images.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 5, 2026
Instead, I’ve been looking at plane tickets, researching heart failure and ordering groceries that, at first, didn’t make much sense together: zucchini, canned pumpkin, chocolate chunks, sticks of cold salted butter.
From Salon ● Aug. 31, 2026
“Well, you’re the one who’s supposed to be researching magical methods of bugging!” said Harry.
From "Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire" by J. K. Rowling
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.
