exploration English · revision 7020

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=borrowing|attested=1537|origins=la exploro}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /ˌɛkspləˈɹeɪʃən/^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[bor|fr|exploration]] and directly [[bor|la|exploratio|t=an examination]],^(Etymonline)^(SOED 2002)^(NODE 1998) from the past participle stem of [[m|la|exploro|alt=explōrāre|t=to investigate, search out]] (see [[explore]]).^(Etymonline)^(MWU 2024)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ Examination, investigation: 1537 in MWU, 1543–44 in the OED, the 1540s in Etymonline.^(MWU 2024)^(OED 1989)^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ The current sense, travelling through an unknown country or place to discover it, dates from the early 19th century (1823).^(NODE 1998)^(OED 1989) In medicine, examination of a wound or organ is from 1860.^(OED 1989) The search for oil or minerals, as in ''exploration well'', is a 20th-century use.^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * 1537 – investigation.^(MWU 2024)

+ * 1823 – exploring a country.^(OED 1989)

+ * 1860 – in medicine.^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Noun===

+ # The act of travelling through an unknown area to learn about it.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # Thorough examination of a subject or idea.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # The search for oil, gas or minerals.^(Collins 2023)

+ # ''(medicine)'' The examination of an organ or wound.^(AHD)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[exploratory]]

+ * [[explorational]]

+ * [[explorationist]]

+ * [[reexploration]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[explorative]]

+ * [[explorer]]

+ * [[explore]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}