Search (verb) — to look carefully and thoroughly in order to find something or someone. Search (noun) — an act of looking for something or someone. Example: She used an online search to find examples of the phrase in context.
What Does Search Mean?
Search entered English in the 14th century from Old French cerchier ("to travel through, to explore"), which itself derived from Late Latin circare ("to go around in a circle") — rooted in Latin circus (circle). The original image was of walking around and through a space looking carefully in every direction. That thorough, systematic quality is still at the heart of the word today.
In everyday British English, search covers a wide range of contexts: you can search a room, search your memory, search a database, or search the internet. As a noun, a search can be a quick online search, a thorough police search, or a frantic search for missing keys. The word sits at A2 level for basic use and extends to more sophisticated collocations and digital vocabulary at B2–C1.
A key grammar point: when the thing you are looking for is named, use search for + object (search for a solution). When the place is named, use search + place directly (search the house). Mixing these up is one of the most common learner errors with this word.
Example Sentences
| Sentence | Level & Usage note |
|---|---|
| I searched online for a good recipe. | A2 — simple past, search + for |
| She searched her bag but could not find her phone. | B1 — search + object (place), no preposition |
| The rescue team carried out a thorough search of the forest. | B1 — noun phrase with adjective + search |
| Police officers searched the property in connection with the investigation. | B2 — formal/legal register, search + object |
| She used an online search to find examples of the phrase in context, then cross-referenced the results with a corpus tool. | C1 — academic/digital research context |
Collocations
| Collocation | Example |
|---|---|
| conduct a search | Police conducted a search of the premises. |
| carry out a search | Volunteers carried out a search of the surrounding area. |
| launch a search | Coastguards launched a search for the missing boat. |
| call off a search | The search was called off after three days. |
| thorough / exhaustive search | A thorough search revealed no evidence of a break-in. |
| frantic search | There was a frantic search for her passport before the flight. |
| online search | A quick online search will give you plenty of examples. |
| search engine | Use a search engine to look up unfamiliar words. |
| search results | The search results showed hundreds of relevant articles. |
| in search of | She moved to London in search of better opportunities. |
Usage Notes
Search for vs. search: Use search for when you name what you are looking for: search for clues, search for a word. Use search directly when you name the place being examined: search the house, search a suspect.
Search vs. look for: Both mean to try to find something. Search implies a more thorough or systematic effort; look for is more casual. You can look for your keys without much effort, but you search a building room by room.
Digital English: In computing and internet contexts, search is used without a preposition: Search Google. Search the database. Enter your search query. This pattern differs from the physical sense.
Register: Search is neutral and fits all registers — from everyday conversation to legal and academic writing. In formal contexts, prefer conduct a search over the informal have a look around.
Common Mistakes
Watch Out For
I searched about the answer on the internet.
I searched for the answer on the internet. (use for, not about)
She searched the information in the library.
She searched for information in the library. (thing sought = use for; place = no preposition)
The police made a search to the building.
The police conducted a search of the building. (noun collocation: search of, not to)
Related Words
Etymology
Search comes from Old French cerchier (to travel through, explore), from Late Latin circare (to go around), derived from Latin circus (circle). The word entered Middle English in the 14th century as serchen, with the meaning of going around a place thoroughly to find something. The modern spelling stabilised in the 16th–17th centuries. The same Latin root gives English circle, circuit, and circumference.