Meaning & use
inquiry
Last updated
Meanings
nouncountable
A question or request for information.
Grammar: Often followed by about or into; British English may spell it enquiry.
Patterns
- an inquiry about something
- make an inquiry
I made an inquiry about the opening hours.
The company received hundreds of inquiries after the advert.
She sent an inquiry to the school about the course.
nouncountableformal
An official investigation to discover the facts about an event.
Grammar: Usually with into: an inquiry into the accident.
Patterns
- an inquiry into something
- hold an inquiry
The government ordered an inquiry into the factory fire.
A public inquiry will examine why the bridge collapsed.
The inquiry found that safety checks had been skipped.
noununcountable
The careful search for knowledge or truth through questioning and study.
Grammar: Often used in education: scientific inquiry.
Patterns
- inquiry into something
- a spirit of inquiry
Science depends on open inquiry.
The class used inquiry to explore how plants grow.
A spirit of inquiry drove her to travel the world.
Word forms
| plural | inquiries |
|---|
Common combinations
- make an inquiry
- I'll make an inquiry at the front desk.
- public inquiry
- A public inquiry was held into the flooding.
- launch an inquiry
- Parliament launched an inquiry into the scandal.
- inquiry into
- The inquiry into the crash lasted a year.
- further inquiries
- Further inquiries revealed the error.
- scientific inquiry
- Scientific inquiry begins with a question.
Synonyms and how they differ
- question
- Question is everyday and informal, while inquiry suggests a more formal request or search.
- investigation
- Investigation implies a deliberate, often official search for facts, whereas inquiry can be as simple as asking.
- probe
- Probe stresses a deep, searching examination, often journalistic or official.
- enquiry
- Enquiry is the common British spelling for simple questions, equal in meaning to inquiry.
Opposites
Word family
- inquire verb
- to ask for information
- inquirer noun
- a person who asks
- inquiring adjective
- curious, as in an inquiring mind
- inquisitive adjective
- eager to learn or ask
Commonly confused: inquiry or inquest?
inquiry vs inquest
An inquest is a legal inquiry into a death, narrower than an inquiry, which can concern anything.
Practice
The government has set up a public ___ into the causes of the accident.
Choose one answer.
Inquiry into is the standard pattern for an official investigation. Inquest is tempting, but it applies specifically to deaths.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “inquiry”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.