Investigate meaning in English
Learn how to use Investigate correctly with Gymglish.
Test and improve your English. Start your free trial today.
TEST YOUR ENGLISH
Free trial and no commitment to buy
4,7 on App Store, Play Store and Trustpilot
More than 8 million learners worldwide
Definition
to investigate: to examine, to study, to research, to look into, to analyze, to inspect
They're investigating the robbery. They will study the evidence to try to find the perpetrator.
an investigation: an examination, a study, an inquiry, research, a review
he is under investigation: he is being investigated, they are currently inquiring into his actions
Last year's bank robbery is still under investigation. The police have not yet found the culprit.
Examples
- "No investigation was conducted."
- "Is it true that Delavigne is currently under investigation by the California Animal Rights Organization, following anonymous reports of monkey abuse?"
- "Authorities are currently investigating possible links to notorious perfume magnate Kalvin Krime."
- "Today we'll be investigating scams and schemes, and talking about how to avoid them."
- "I'm not saying an American firm would be any better, but perhaps we could investigate other options."
- "Fortunately for law enforcement officials, the investigation lasted less than an hour."
- "I need you to investigate a salesman named Spencer."
- "Is this some sort of undercover investigation?"
- "I'll investigate the case, and try to get to the bottom of all of this."
Exercise 1
Patrick O'Shaughnessy asks Susie if Delavigne is being by the California Animal Rights Organization, because they .
Patrick O'Shaughnessy asks Susie if Delavigne is being inspected and reviewed 1 by the California Animal Rights Organization, because they test their products on animals 2.
1 inspected and reviewed: Mr. O'Shaughnessy asks if Delavigne is currently "under investigation". He is asking if the company is being reviewed and investigated by the California Animal Rights Organization.
1 sued: Mr. O'Shaughnessy does not talk about Delavigne being "sued" by anyone. "To sue somebody" is to bring a legal action against them, or to take them to court. The term is not synonymous with being "under investigation".
1 taken to court: Although being "under investigation" may eventually lead to a court case or to a trial, the expression carries an entirely different meaning than the phrase "under investigation". To "take (someone) to court" is to attack them legally in a court of law.
1 publicly denounced: Mr. O'Shaughnessy does not talk about Delavigne being "publicly denounced", which means "insulted", "condemned" or "denigrated".
2 test their products on animals: Mr. O'Shaughnessy says that Delavigne is "under investigation" for "monkey abuse", which suggests that Delavigne is testing its products on animals or simply mistreating monkeys.
2 publish false reports: Mr. O'Shaughnessy refers to "anonymous reports", earlier in the conference but this is unrelated to the "monkey abuse" allegations he indicates in this passage.
2 mistreat their employees: Although O'Shaughnessy is in fact referring to "abuse" in the sense of "mistreatment", the monkeys in Delavigne's laboratories are not actually "employees", but "voluntary assistants", as Susie states in response to this question.
2 ignore environmental initiatives: Mr. O'Shaughnessy never mentions the environment, and "monkey abuse" is a different issue than "ignoring environmental initiatives", which Delavigne does not do either.
Exercise 2
Choose all the TRUE statements from the list below.
There may be more than one correct choice!
There may be more than one correct choice!
Choose all the TRUE statements from the list below.
There may be more than one correct choice!
There may be more than one correct choice!
This statement is false. Trey writes that his years at Cosmic Cosmetics (a cosmetics company) have prepared him for working at Delavigne (also a cosmetics company).
This is a true statement. Trey writes about his 10 years in the customer service field, as well as management experience in a local telemarketing firm. These are clear indications that he has both management and customer service experience.
This is a true statement. Trey writes about his "research of the Delavigne Corporation", which suggests that he has investigated and learned about the company before sending this letter. Researching a company in preparation for an interview is a typical practice and an effective way to impress an employer.
This statement is false. Trey never admits to being "under-qualified" for the position. On the contrary, Trey writes that he is the "ideal candidate" and that his skills are a "perfect fit" for the Delavigne Corporation. "To be under-qualified" is to not possess enough qualifications or skills for something.
Still unsure of the best way to use 'Investigate'? Improve your English thanks to our online English lessons. We offer a free test as well as a free level assessment!
What our users say:
Test your English with Gymglish today and get a free level assessment
Absolutely free - no strings attached.
