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Glite Dictionary
❓ To ask 🕵️ To investigate
to inquire

to inquire

16 3.7
To ask questions as part of an official investigation
  • verb
  • /ɪnˈkwaɪər/
  • Formal
translation icon : investigar
  • Fifth, we need to inquire further into the nature of mental models of narrators.
  • court will inquire
  • inquire into the nature
  • inquire into the issue

That policy approach doesn't inquire about the supply response that hopefully those subsidies elicit.

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Examples

  • Just been appointed Special Investigator to inquire into the rackets.

    Party Girl (1958)

  • Ellis recalls walking into a courtroom only to have the judge inquire whether she was the court reporter.

    Academic text (2003)

  • I have no right to inquire into your actions.

    From Here to Eternity (1953)

  • A single royal commission was created to inquire about sanitary improvements.

    Academic text (2011)

  • And by then the FBI was inquiring into what went on at that pool party.

    Megyn Kelly

  • I wish to inquire what possible relevance the testimony of a zoology professor can have in this trial.

    Inherit the Wind (1960)

  • So when the DA's office inquired... I found myself faced with a hard choice, you know?

    The Hard Corps (2005)

  • Mr. Deasey will be inquiring into the death of Mr. Quayle's wife.

    The Constant Gardener (2005)

  • I thought I should tell you that the Superintendent of Schools has been inquiring about Lydia Martinez.

    Fiction book (1995)

  • Please inquire at the front desk for information regarding your reservation.

Synonyms

to ask
vsto inquire
∞ 1.0

To request that someone do something or meet a requirement

is specifically a formal or official asking often tied to a procedure
to investigate
vsto inquire
∞ 2.8

To look carefully at something to find facts

is the formal act of asking for information or examining a case
to question
vsto inquire
570 1.0

To ask someone questions to get information

is specifically formal and often official rather than a casual information request
to examine
vsto inquire
  • Formal
53 3.1

To ask someone many questions in a formal way to find out facts

is the broader formal process of requesting information or examining issues
to launch an investigation
vsto inquire
  • Formal
51 3.7

To officially start a careful check by a government, company, or the police

is a formal request or investigation often within an official process
to ask around
vsto inquire
  • Informal
40 2.1

To ask several people for information

is a formal or official method rather than casual enquiries among people
to probe
vsto inquire
  • Literature
35 5.1

To ask careful questions to find hidden information

is the formal procedure used when seeking information in official contexts
to query
vsto inquire
18 3.7

To ask a person a question to show doubt or get information

leans more toward official, process-based requests for information
to ask after
vsto inquire
  • UK
9 3.3

Ask how someone is and about their health

is used for formal information requests or investigations, not casual checks
to sound out
vsto inquire
2 4.4

Try to find out what someone thinks by asking indirect questions

is more formal and direct, used within official or procedural contexts

How Official

to investigate
∞ 2.8
to inquire
  • Formal
16 3.7
to question
570 1.0
to ask
∞ 1.0

Surface Forms

inquire infinitive
enquire infinitive
inquired past
enquired past
inquired past participle
enquired past participle
inquiring present participle
enquiring present participle
inquires third person singular
enquires third person singular

Etymology

Inquire has the same Latin parts in- 'into' and quaerere 'to seek', which gives the sense of 'looking into' a matter. That's why to inquire in an official way is to formally search for facts or to find out what happened.