searching

[sur-ching]

adjective

1. examining carefully or thoroughly.

   a searching inspection.

2. acutely observant or penetrating.

   a searching glance; a searching mind.

3. piercing or sharp.

   a searching wind.

searching

/ ˈsɜːtʃɪŋ /

adjective

1. keenly penetrating

   a searching look

Other Word Forms

• searchingly adverb
• searchingness noun
• self-searching adjective
• unsearching adjective
• unsearchingly adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of searching¹

First recorded in 1570–80; search + -ing ²

Example Sentences

England are searching for that fifth bowler which balances their side.

From BBC

Ministers are already searching for buyers for two steel companies and another has been publicly owned since 2021.

From BBC

You can escape it if you isolate yourself, and make yourself stick to something because that’s what you know, but I think that searching and trying to express yourself is art.

From Los Angeles Times

This latest one-day international thrashing at Headingley, the third in a row in the format after those two in India and Pakistan, will not cause such searching of the soul.

From BBC

Buckley’s searching, searing turn seems destined to be lauded countless times these next few months, a performance that is as impossible to ignore as the character she plays.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• curious 
• seeking www.thesaurus.com