Meanings
present singular third person enquires · participle present enquiring · participle past enquired · past enquired
- BritishEnglishBritish English form of inquire.
He enquired about the availability of rental bicycles in the town.
2 more examples
Having thus at length enquired the truth concerning Law and dispense.
1643, J[ohn] M[ilton], The Doctrine and Discipline of Divorce: […], London: […] T[homas] P[aine] and M[atthew] S[immons] […], →OCLCThus prompts his accents and his actions still, / And all obey and few enquire his will; / To such, brief answer and contemptuous eye / Convey reproof, nor further deign reply.
1814, Lord Byron, “Canto I”, in The Corsair, a Tale, London: […] Thomas Davison, […], for John Murray, […], →OCLC, stanza II, page 5, lines 79–82
Synonyms & antonyms
verbaddress a question to and expect an answer from
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- Proto-Indo-European*kʷeh₂-“to acquire”
- Proto-Italic*kʷaizeō
- Latinquaerere
- Old Frenchenquerre
- Englishenquire
From Old French enquerre, from en- + querre (“to search, to look for”), from Latin quaerere, of uncertain origin, but possibly from Proto-Italic *kʷaizeō, from Proto-Indo-European *kʷeh₂- (“to acquire”).
More words from Old French, Latin, Proto-Italic
Full word history & related roots →Rhymes & wordplay
Rhymes with enquire
Cite this entry
enquire. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/enquire
“enquire.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/enquire. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “enquire,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/enquire.
Source: enquire on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.