Meanings
search1
plural searches
- countableuncountableAn attempt to find something.
With only five minutes until we were meant to leave, the search for the keys started in earnest.
1 more example
At least eight people died, and officials expressed deep concerns that the toll would rise as more searches of homes were carried out.
2012 October 31, David M. Halbfinger, New York Times, retrieved 31 Oct 2012Synonyms: sweep
- countableuncountableThe act of searching in general.
Search is a hard problem for computers to solve efficiently.
1 more example
Where we once sent love letters in a sealed envelope, or stuck photographs of our children in a family album, now such private material is despatched to servers and clouds operated by people we don't know and will never meet. Perhaps we assume that our name, address and search preferences will be viewed by some unseen pair of corporate eyes, probably not human, and don't mind that much.
2013 June 14, Jonathan Freedland, “Obama's once hip brand is now tainted”, in The Guardian Weekly, volume 189, number 1, page 18
present singular third person searches · participle present searching · participle past searched · past searched · first person past singular searched · archaic present second person singular searchest · past second person singular searched · archaic past second person singular searchedst · present singular third person searches · archaic present singular third person searcheth · past singular third person searched · past plural searched · past subjunctive searched · participle present searching · participle past searched
- transitiveTo look in (a place) for something.
I searched the garden for the keys and found them in the vegetable patch.
Synonyms: comb
- intransitiveTo look thoroughly.
The police are searching for evidence in his flat.
3 more examples
It sufficeth that they have once with care and fairness sifted the matter as far as they could, and searched into all the particulars.
1689 (indicated as 1690), [John Locke], An Essay Concerning Humane Understanding. […], London: […] Eliz[abeth] Holt, for Thomas Basset, […], →OCLCHe tried to persuade Cicely to stay away from the ball-room for a fourth dance.[…]But she said she must go back, and when they joined the crowd again[…]she found her mother standing up before the seat on which she had sat all the evening searching anxiously for her with her eyes, and her father by her side.
1909 September 9, Archibald Marshall [pseudonym; Arthur Hammond Marshall], chapter I, in The Squire’s Daughter, London: Methuen & Co. […], →OCLCInvestors face a quandary. Cash offers a return of virtually zero in many developed countries; government-bond yields may have risen in recent weeks but they are still unattractive. Equities have suffered two big bear markets since 2000 and are wobbling again. It is hardly surprising that pension funds, insurers and endowments are searching for new sources of return.
2013 July 6, “The rise of smart beta”, in The Economist, volume 408, number 8843, page 68Synonyms: look for
- archaictransitiveTo look for, seek.
Anough is left besides to search and know.
1667, John Milton, “Book VII”, in Paradise Lost. […], London: […] [Samuel Simmons], and are to be sold by Peter Parker […]; [a]nd by Robert Boulter […]; [a]nd Matthias Walker, […], →OCLC; republished as Paradise Lost in Ten Books: […], London: Basil Montagu Pickering […], 1873, →OCLC2 more examples
To search the God of loue, her Nymphes she sent / Throughout the wandring forrest euery where[…].
1590, Edmund Spenser, “Book III, Canto VI”, in The Faerie Queene. […], London: […] [John Wolfe] for William Ponsonbie, →OCLCFor thus saith the Lord God; Behold, I, even I, will both search my sheep, and seek them out.
1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Ezekiel 34:11 - transitiveTo put a phrase into a search engine, especially one besides Google.
I searched "Paris Hilton" and found lots of unflattering stories.
- obsoletetransitiveTo probe or examine (a wound).
Now to the bottome dost thou search my wound.
c. 1588–1593 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Lamentable Tragedy of Titus Andronicus”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act II, scene iii]3 more examples
Now torne we to the xj kynges that retorned vnto a cyte that hyghte Sorhaute / the whiche cyte was within kynge Vryens / and ther they refresshed hem as wel as they myght / and made leches serche theyr woundys and sorowed gretely for the dethe of her peple
1485, Sir Thomas Malory, “xvj”, in Le Morte Darthur, book IThus when they all had sorowed their fill, / They softly gan to search his griesly wownd[…].
1590, Edmund Spenser, “Book III, Canto IV”, in The Faerie Queene. […], London: […] [John Wolfe] for William Ponsonbie, →OCLCHis wife perceiving him to droope and languish away, entreated him she might leasurely search and neerely view the quality of his disease[…].
1603, Michel de Montaigne, chapter 35, in John Florio, transl., The Essayes […], book II, London: […] Val[entine] Simmes for Edward Blount […], →OCLC - obsoleteTo examine; to try; to put to the test.
Search2
Synonyms & antonyms
nounAn attempt to find something.
verbTo look in (a place) for something.
verbTo look thoroughly.
More synonyms by meaning
nounthe activity of looking thoroughly in order to find something or someone
nounan operation that determines whether one or more of a set of items has a specified property
verbtry to locate or discover, or try to establish the existence of
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
search · noun, verb
- Proto-Indo-European*(s)ker-
- Ancient Greekκίρκος (kírkos)
- Latincircus
- Late Latincircō
- Anglo-Normansercher
- Middle Englishserchen
- Englishsearch
Inherited from Middle English serchen, borrowed from Anglo-Norman sercher, Old French cerchier, from Late Latin circō, ,circāre (“to circle; go around; search for”), from circus. Unrelated to German suchen, which is cognate with English seek.
More words from Middle English, Anglo-Norman, Old French
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Afrikaans soektog, soektogte
- soektogan attempt to find something
- soektogtean attempt to find something
- soekto look throughout (a place) for something
Ancient Greek ζήτησις, ἔρευνα
- ζήτησις (zḗtēsis)an attempt to find something
- ἔρευνα (éreuna)an attempt to find something
- ἐρευνάω (ereunáō)to look throughout (a place) for something
Arabic طَلَب, بَحْث
- طَلَب (ṭalab)an attempt to find something
- بَحْث (baḥṯ)an attempt to find something
- بَحَثَ (baḥaṯa)to look throughout (a place) for something
- فَتَّشَ (fattaša)to look throughout (a place) for something
- بَحَثَ عَنْ (baḥaṯa ʕan)(followed by "for") to look thoroughly
Basque bilatu, xerkatu
- bilatuto look throughout (a place) for something
- xerkatuto look throughout (a place) for something
Bengali খোঁজা, খোঁজা
- খোঁজা (khō̃ja)to look throughout (a place) for something
- খোঁজা (khō̃ja)(followed by "for") to look thoroughly
Bulgarian тъ́рсене, тъ́рся
- тъ́рсене (tắrsene)an attempt to find something
- тъ́рся (tắrsja)to look throughout (a place) for something
- претъ́рсвам (pretắrsvam)to look throughout (a place) for something
- търся (tărsja)(followed by "for") to look thoroughly
Catalan cerca, inspeccionar
- cercaan attempt to find something
- inspeccionarto look throughout (a place) for something
- cercarto look throughout (a place) for something
- buscar(followed by "for") to look thoroughly
- cercar(followed by "for") to look thoroughly
Chinese Mandarin 搜索, 搜索
- 搜索 (sōusuǒ)an attempt to find something
- 搜索 (sōusuǒ)to look throughout (a place) for something
- 搜尋 /搜寻 (sōuxún)to look throughout (a place) for something
- 尋找 /寻找 (xúnzhǎo)to look throughout (a place) for something
- 尋覓 /寻觅 (xúnmì)to look throughout (a place) for something
- 尋求 /寻求 (xúnqiú)to look throughout (a place) for something
- 找 (zhǎo)to look throughout (a place) for something
- 找尋 /找寻 (zhǎoxún)to look throughout (a place) for something
Czech hledání, hledat
- hledánían attempt to find something
- hledatto look throughout (a place) for something
- hledat(followed by "for") to look thoroughly
Danish eftersøgning, søge
- eftersøgningan attempt to find something
- søgeto look throughout (a place) for something
- ledeto look throughout (a place) for something
- søge(followed by "for") to look thoroughly
- lede(followed by "for") to look thoroughly
Dutch speurtocht, zoektocht
- speurtochtan attempt to find something
- zoektochtan attempt to find something
- afzoekento look throughout (a place) for something
- doorzoekento look throughout (a place) for something
- zoekento look throughout (a place) for something
- zoeken(followed by "for") to look thoroughly
Esperanto serĉo, priserĉi
- serĉoan attempt to find something
- priserĉito look throughout (a place) for something
- serĉi(followed by "for") to look thoroughly
Estonian otsimine, otsing
- otsiminean attempt to find something
- otsingan attempt to find something
- otsimato look throughout (a place) for something
Finnish etsintä, haku
- etsintäan attempt to find something
- hakuan attempt to find something
- etsiminenan attempt to find something
- hakeminenan attempt to find something
- penkominenan attempt to find something
- etsiäto look throughout (a place) for something
- tutkiato look throughout (a place) for something
- penkoato look throughout (a place) for something
- etsiä(followed by "for") to look thoroughly
French recherche, chercher
- recherchean attempt to find something
- chercherto look throughout (a place) for something
- fouillerto look throughout (a place) for something
- chercher(followed by "for") to look thoroughly
German Suche, suchen
- Suchean attempt to find something
- suchento look throughout (a place) for something
- absuchento look throughout (a place) for something
- durchsuchento look throughout (a place) for something
- suchen(followed by "for") to look thoroughly
Greek αναζήτηση, ψάχνω
- αναζήτηση (anazítisi)an attempt to find something
- ψάχνω (psáchno)to look throughout (a place) for something
- αναζητώ (anazitó)(followed by "for") to look thoroughly
- ερευνώ (erevnó)(followed by "for") to look thoroughly
Hebrew חיפוש \ חִפּוּשׂ, חיפש \ חִפֵּשׂ
- חיפוש \ חִפּוּשׂ (khipús)an attempt to find something
- חיפש \ חִפֵּשׂ (khipés)to look throughout (a place) for something
Hindi खोज, जाँच
- खोज (khoj)an attempt to find something
- जाँच (jā̃c)an attempt to find something
- तलाश (talāś)an attempt to find something
- जुस्तजू (justajū)an attempt to find something
- खोजना (khojnā)to look throughout (a place) for something
- ढूँढना (ḍhūṇḍhnā)to look throughout (a place) for something
- ढूँढ़ना (ḍhū̃ṛhnā)to look throughout (a place) for something
- जुस्तजू करना (justajū karnā)to look throughout (a place) for something
- खोजना (khojnā)(followed by "for") to look thoroughly
Hungarian keresés, átkutat
- keresésan attempt to find something
- átkutatto look throughout (a place) for something
Icelandic leit, leita
- leitan attempt to find something
- leitato look throughout (a place) for something
Indonesian mencari, geledah
- mencarito look throughout (a place) for something
- geledahto look throughout (a place) for something
Irish cuardach, cuardaigh
- cuardachan attempt to find something
- cuardaighto look throughout (a place) for something
Italian ricerca, cerca
- ricercaan attempt to find something
- cercaan attempt to find something
- cercareto look throughout (a place) for something
- buscare(followed by "for") to look thoroughly
- cercare(followed by "for") to look thoroughly
Japanese 検索, 捜索
- 検索 (kensaku)an attempt to find something
- 捜索 (sōsaku)an attempt to find something
- 探す (sagasu)to look throughout (a place) for something
- 捜す (sagasu)to look throughout (a place) for something
- 探す (sagasu)(followed by "for") to look thoroughly
Korean 검색, 수색
- 검색 (geomsaek)an attempt to find something
- 수색 (susaek)an attempt to find something
- 찾기 (chatgi)an attempt to find something
- 찾다 (chatda)to look throughout (a place) for something
Latin scrūtinium, scisco
- scrūtiniuman attempt to find something
- sciscoto look throughout (a place) for something
- scrūtorto look throughout (a place) for something
- pervēnorto look throughout (a place) for something
- quaerō(followed by "for") to look thoroughly
- scisco(followed by "for") to look thoroughly
- vestigo(followed by "for") to look thoroughly
Latvian meklēšana, meklēt
- meklēšanaan attempt to find something
- meklētto look throughout (a place) for something
Lithuanian paieška, ieškojimas
- paieškaan attempt to find something
- ieškojimasan attempt to find something
- ieškotito look throughout (a place) for something
- ieškoti(followed by "for") to look thoroughly
Malay cari, mencari
- carian attempt to find something
- mencarito look throughout (a place) for something
Māori kimihanga, rapunga
- kimihangaan attempt to find something
- rapungaan attempt to find something
- kimito look throughout (a place) for something
- kimikimito look throughout (a place) for something
- raputo look throughout (a place) for something
- pōrangito look throughout (a place) for something
- ngaropokoto look throughout (a place) for something
- hāhauto look throughout (a place) for something
- tīramato look throughout (a place) for something
- kimi(followed by "for") to look thoroughly
- hure(followed by "for") to look thoroughly
- haurapa(followed by "for") to look thoroughly
Norwegian lete
- lete(followed by "for") to look thoroughly
Norwegian Bokmål leting, søk
- letingan attempt to find something
- søkan attempt to find something
- søkenan attempt to find something
- søketo look throughout (a place) for something
- leteto look throughout (a place) for something
Persian جستجو کردن
- جستجو کردن (jostoju kardan)to look throughout (a place) for something
Polish poszukiwanie, przeszukiwanie
- poszukiwaniean attempt to find something
- przeszukiwaniean attempt to find something
- szukaćto look throughout (a place) for something
- przeszukaćto look throughout (a place) for something
- przeszukiwaćto look throughout (a place) for something
Portuguese busca, buscar
- buscaan attempt to find something
- buscarto look throughout (a place) for something
- procurarto look throughout (a place) for something
- procurar(followed by "for") to look thoroughly
Romanian căuta
- căutato look throughout (a place) for something
Russian по́иск, о́быск
- по́иск (póisk)an attempt to find something
- о́быск (óbysk)an attempt to find something
- ро́зыск (rózysk)an attempt to find something
- иска́ть (iskátʹ)to look throughout (a place) for something
- разы́скивать (razýskivatʹ)(followed by "for") to look thoroughly
- разыска́ть (razyskátʹ)(followed by "for") to look thoroughly
Scottish Gaelic sireadh, lorg
- sireadhan attempt to find something
- lorg(followed by "for") to look thoroughly
- sir(followed by "for") to look thoroughly
- iarr(followed by "for") to look thoroughly
Slovak hľadanie, hľadať
- hľadaniean attempt to find something
- hľadaťto look throughout (a place) for something
Spanish búsqueda, esculco
- búsquedaan attempt to find something
- esculcoan attempt to find something
- rebuscaan attempt to find something
- rebuscoan attempt to find something
- campeadaan attempt to find something
- buscaan attempt to find something
- buscamientoan attempt to find something
- rebuscamientoan attempt to find something
- cateoan attempt to find something
- rebuscarto look throughout (a place) for something
- allanarto look throughout (a place) for something
- registrarto look throughout (a place) for something
- esculcarto look throughout (a place) for something
- escurcarto look throughout (a place) for something
- campearto look throughout (a place) for something
- camperearto look throughout (a place) for something
- catearto look throughout (a place) for something
- buscar(followed by "for") to look thoroughly
- sondear buscando(followed by "for") to look thoroughly
Swedish sökning, sökande
- sökningan attempt to find something
- sökandean attempt to find something
- genomsökato look throughout (a place) for something
- sökato look throughout (a place) for something
- söka(followed by "for") to look thoroughly
- leta(followed by "for") to look thoroughly
Thai การค้นหา, ค้นหา
- การค้นหา (gaan-kón-hǎa)an attempt to find something
- ค้นหา (kón-hǎa)to look throughout (a place) for something
- มองหา (mɔɔng-hǎa)to look throughout (a place) for something
- หา (hǎa)to look throughout (a place) for something
- ค้น (kón)to look throughout (a place) for something
Turkish arama, aramak
- aramaan attempt to find something
- aramakto look throughout (a place) for something
Ukrainian по́шук, о́бшук
- по́шук (póšuk)an attempt to find something
- о́бшук (óbšuk)an attempt to find something
- шука́ти (šukáty)to look throughout (a place) for something
- обшу́кувати (obšúkuvaty)to look throughout (a place) for something
- обшука́ти (obšukáty)to look throughout (a place) for something
Urdu جُستَجُو, جُسْتُجُو
- جُستَجُو (justajū)an attempt to find something
- جُسْتُجُو (justujū)an attempt to find something
- کھوج (khoj)an attempt to find something
- تَلاش (talāś)an attempt to find something
- جان٘چ (jā̃c)an attempt to find something
- ڈھونڈھنا (ḍhū̃ḍhnā)to look throughout (a place) for something
Vietnamese tìm, tìm kiếm
- tìmto look throughout (a place) for something
- tìm kiếmto look throughout (a place) for something
- tìm kiếm(followed by "for") to look thoroughly
- tìm(followed by "for") to look thoroughly
Yiddish זוכן
- זוכן (zukhn)to look throughout (a place) for something
Rhymes & wordplay
Rhymes with search
Anagrams
Cite this entry
search. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/search
“search.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/search. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “search,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/search.
Source: search on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.