investigator
/ˌɪnˈvestəˌɡeɪtə/in-VEH-stuh-gay-tur
UK form converted from the US by rule · unchecked/ˌɪnˈvɛstəˌɡeɪtɚ/in-VEH-stuh-gay-tur
Meaningone who investigates
Common meaning: a person who examines something closely
Tap a word part to explore
- inin, into; (before adjectives) not
- vestiga footprintLewis & Short, Latin Dictionary (1879), p. 1981 · scan
- atverb or adjective ending: to make, having
- oragent ending: the doer, or the device that does it
‘in, into’ + ‘a footprint’ → investigator
Journey through time
- Latinvestīgium, -ī‘a footprint’
- Englishinvestigate‘to examine closely’
- Englishformed in English from investigateinvestigator‘a person who examines something closely’ · today
Sources & notes
Meaning: “Meaning” is the sense that emerges from the word’s roots; “Common meaning” is today’s everyday sense. Both written by us.
Pronunciation
- UK IPA: converted from the US form by rule (unchecked). Respelling: generated.
- No UK recording; the speaker uses your device’s en-GB voice.
- US IPA: CMUdict (BSD-2), converted to IPA by rule. Respelling: generated.
- No US recording; the speaker uses your device’s en-US voice.
Origin: Formed in English from investigate + -or.
Dictionary: Skeat (1898), INVESTIGATE, p.301 · scan
Roots
- vestīgium, -ī Latin “a footprint”
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