Link Centre Dictionary

inquire

in·quire

UK/ɪnˈkwaɪə/ US/ɪŋˈkwaɪə/ fairly common us

verb

1.

inquire about

  • “I asked about their special today”
  • “He had to ask directions several times”
Synonyms
2.

have a wish or desire to know something

  • “He wondered who had built this beautiful church”
Synonyms
3.

conduct an inquiry or investigation of

  • “The district attorney”
  • “;”
Synonyms

Origin

From Latin inquīrō (“to seek for”), composed of in- (“in, at, on; into”) + quaerō (“to seek, look for”), of uncertain origin, but possibly from Proto-Italic *kʷaizeō, from Proto-Indo-European *kʷeh₂- (“to acquire”). Displaced Middle English enqueren (from Old French enquerre, of the same source) and native Middle English speir (“ask, inquire”).

Phrases

  • inquire after
  • inquire of

Related words

Word family

Broader terms

Narrower terms

Related verbs

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.