Exploratory surgery revealed her liver cancer...
The Prime Minister's talks with the leaders of the Democratic Party were largely exploratory.
English dictionary. 2008.
Exploratory — Ex*plor a*to*ry, a. [L. exploratorius.] Serving or intended to explore; searching; examining; explorative. Sir H. Wotton. [1913 Webster] … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
exploratory — index interrogative, precursory, probative, tentative Burton s Legal Thesaurus. William C. Burton. 2006 … Law dictionary
exploratory — mid 15c., from L. exploratorius belonging to scouts, from explorator scout, from explorare (see EXPLORE (Cf. explore)). Alternative explorative is from 1738 … Etymology dictionary
exploratory — [eks plôr′ətiv, ik splôr′ətivek splôr′ə tôr΄ē, iksplôr′ə tôr΄ē] adj. [ME < L exploratorius] of, in, or for exploration: also explorative [eks plôr′ətiv, ik splôr′ətiv] … English World dictionary
exploratory — adjective Date: 1620 of, relating to, or being exploration < exploratory surgery > < exploratory drilling for oil > … New Collegiate Dictionary
exploratory — ex|plor|a|to|ry [ ık splɔrə,tɔri ] adjective done in order to learn more about something: The doctor explained the need for exploratory surgery. Talks are still in the exploratory stage … Usage of the words and phrases in modern English
exploratory — UK [ɪkˈsplɒrət(ə)rɪ] / US [ɪkˈsplɔrəˌtɔrɪ] adjective done in order to learn more about something The doctor explained the need for exploratory surgery. Talks are still in the exploratory stage … English dictionary
exploratory — exploratively, adv. /ik splawr euh tawr ee, splohr euh tohr ee/, adj. 1. pertaining to or concerned with exploration: an exploratory operation. 2. inclined to make explorations. Also, explorative. [1425 75; late ME < L exploratorius. See… … Universalium
exploratory — Relating to, or with a view to, exploration. * * * ex·plor·ato·ry ik splōr ə .tōr ē, splȯr , .tȯr adj of, relating to, or being exploration <exploratory surgery> … Medical dictionary
exploratory — adj. Exploratory is used with these nouns: ↑meeting, ↑operation, ↑stage, ↑surgery, ↑talk … Collocations dictionary
