examine synonyms

examine

v.

  1. To inspect with care

    inspect, analyze, scrutinize, investigate, inquire into, delve into, go into, scan, probe, study, test, sift, explore, reconnoiter, audit, take stock of, take note of, make an inventory of, consider, canvass, survey, search, ransack, review, assay, check, check out, check up on, reexamine, go back over, concentrate on, give one's attention to, look at, observe, contemplate, look into, see into, look over, peruse, pore over, go through, conduct research on, research, fathom, thresh out, search out, track down, smell out, see about, run checks on, run tests on, put to the test, parse, winnow, sound out, feel out, subject to scrutiny, run the eye over, peer at, peer into, search into, pry into, hold up to the light, finger, turn over, pick over, criticize, look for flaws, sample, monitor, vet, experiment with, case*, give the once-over*, size up*, get the lay of*, play around with*, give a going-over*, poke around*, smell around*, nose around*, look up and down*, go over with a fine-toothed comb*, get the lay of the land*, cast the eyes over, eyeball*, flip through the pages, see how the land lies*, bury oneself in*, go behind*, fool around with*, sit on, dig into*, dive into*, go deep into.

  2. To test

    question, query, interrogate, catechize, cross-examine, judge, measure, experiment, weigh, check, try, give an exam, try out, quiz.

examine suggests close observation or investigation to determine the condition, quality, validity, etc. of something examined thoroughly by a doctor; scrutinize implies a looking over carefully and searchingly in order to observe the minutest details he slowly scrutinized the bank note; inspect implies close, critical observation, esp. for detecting errors, flaws, etc. to inspect a building for fire hazards; scan, in its earlier, stricter sense, implies close scrutiny, but in current usage, it more frequently connotes a quick, rather superficial survey to scan the headlines

Webster's New World Roget's A-Z Thesaurus Copyright © 1999 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.