Meaning & use

probe

verb·Academic

To investigate or examine something thoroughly and carefully, often to uncover hidden information.

See it in a sentence

Detectives probed the company's financial records for evidence of fraud.

The interviewer probed further when the candidate's answer seemed evasive.

A note on using this word

As a noun, probe also names a slender instrument used to explore a wound or cavity, or an unmanned spacecraft sent to explore space.

Words with a similar meaning

Choose a synonym to suit the sentence. Meanings can overlap without being identical.

Another way to use it

2. noun

An unmanned spacecraft or instrument sent to explore and gather data from a distant or hard-to-reach place.

The space probe transmitted images of the planet's surface back to Earth.

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “probe”, then compare your use with the examples above.

Your draft stays on this page and is not sent anywhere.