These words inquire and enquire as well as their forms. However, in the us, inquiry is more widely used than enquiry to the extent that many will consider enquiry a spelling mistake of inquiry. This extends to derivative words inquiry, inquirer, etc. Definition of inquire verb in oxford advanced american dictionary. Come play alongside philadelphias top companies who are putting their employees front and center. The quick answer what is the difference between inquiry and enquiry. In the inquire online student handbook and teachers guide, youll find all the same great content you get in the print books and a lot of extras. If you have information the public deserves to know, we want to hear from you. The oxford learners dictionary has an help box regarding enquire vs inquire, ill paste it here in british english people sometimes distinguish between enquire and inquire, using enquire for the general meaning of ask for information and inquire for the more particular meaning of officially investigate. In british english, use inquire for formal investigations and enquire for less formal questioning. To inquireenquire into something is the process of investigating or asking questions with the aim of getting more. Smashing grammar 2019 written by the founder of grammar monster, smashing grammar includes a glossary of grammar. Definition of inquire written for english language learners from the merriamwebster learners dictionary with audio pronunciations, usage examples, and countnoncount noun labels.
Pages can include limited notes and highlighting, and the copy can include previous owner inscriptions. In fact, one rarely appears in american english at all. I thought it might be rude to inquire about her exhusband. Among the list of commonly confused words, there are some pairs of words that can be used interchangeably because they mean pretty much the same thing. Inquire and enquire both originate from the same latin word, meaning to seek.
Merriamwebsters dictionary us, for example, lists both definitions under inquire. Enquire and inquire english only forum enquireinquire english only forum enquireinquire english only forum i am writing to inquire about the possibility english only forum i want to inquire about his health well being. However, the guardian a british newspaper tells writers to use inquiry and the oxford english dictionary seems to recognise inquire as the more dominant form, deeming enquiry. However, the traditional distinction is that enquire is used for ask and inquire is used for investigate, so it is possible to. Alright, well this one is quite subjective, depending on where you live and even where you work. In the uk, the two words are used interchangeably, although inquire is still the more commonly used word for formal or official investigations in the united states, inquire is the strongly preferred spelling in all uses. The difference between enquiry and inquiry grammar lesson.
Enquire meaning in the cambridge english dictionary. Inquiry and enquiry are two of the most commonly confused words in english. In this article you will learn the differences between enquire and inquire. However, it is commonly spelled inquire in formal contexts like that shown in 3, especially in the uk. Real sentences showing how to use inquire correctly. Both words mean to request information or examine facts. Even though there are some minor differences that you should pay attention to, in many cases, using one word or the other. In the united states, inquire is the strongly preferred spelling in all uses. Little gold grammar book brandon royal, maven publishing, 2010 the blue book of grammar and punctuation by jane straus, lester. Inquire or enquire can be used as either a verb or as a noun. A copy that has been read, but remains in clean condition. Inquiry and enquiry are both nouns that can mean a question, an investigation, or a close examination of a matter.
In british english people sometimes distinguish between enquire and inquire, using enquire for the general meaning of ask for information and inquire for the more particular meaning of officially investigate however, you can use either spelling in either meaning. In practice, however, enquire and enquiry is more common in british english while inquire and inquiry is more common in us english, but. I enquired his name the first enquiry in my inbox today was about lost property. Where the two are used for the same purposes, inquire is the more common form. The traditional distinction between enquire and inquire is that enquire is to be used for general senses of ask while inquire is reserved for uses meaning make a formal investigation. In us english, you should use inquire in all situations. Inquire and enquire are not used in the same way in american english and british.
When i looked both of them up in my language dictionary it seemed to convey the same meaning but that cannot be, can it. Inquire definition of inquire by the free dictionary. Either spelling can be used, but many people prefer enquire and enquiry for the general sense of ask, and inquire and inquiry for a formal investigation. The words enquiry and inquiry also have associated verbs to enquire and to inquire. Inquire definition and meaning collins english dictionary. Inquireenquire after is a phrasal verb which means to ask about things such as how a person is doing, what they are doing etc. Use enquire in a sentence enquire sentence examples. And just what, may we ask, is the difference between these.
Meaning, pronunciation, picture, example sentences, grammar, usage notes, synonyms and more. While inquire means to seek information in a formal way, enquire means to ask in a general way. Enquire or inquire, which is less frequent in british english may be used with a few prepositions. Jumble was created in 1954 below, you will find the most unscrambled letters for each descramble word game that others have solved or decoded to make the word inquire is inquire a scrabble word or can you use inquire in words with friends. In the uk, the two words are used interchangeably, although inquire is still the more commonly used word for formal or official investigations. In american english inquire is usually used in both meanings see inquire in the oxford advanced american dictionary. Inquire online handbook and teachers guide thoughtful. Enquire and inquire difference learn english youtube. Difference between enquire and inquire compare the. In the uk, inquiry and enquiry are interchangeable. I have a customer on the phone inquiring about the publication date. Dictionary grammar blog school scrabble thesaurus translator quiz more resources more from collins.
The reality is that enquireenquiry and inquireinquiry are common for both asking for information and formal investigations. Well, he does constantly inquire after your condition. This week, an inquiry into enquiring and inquiring. If you wonder about how the world began, you inquire about its origin. Thornley, she pays only slight attention to what mrs. They both are a formal way of saying ask about or investigate something. Inquire and enquire are two words that have some difference between them, but are often confused when it comes to their usage. However, it is becoming preferable to use inquiry to denote an investigation and enquiry to denote a question.
Mercy hospital in west philadelphia faces closure as an inpatient. To book a lecture event with mignon fogarty for your. With just a change of one little letter, the meaning, although nearly the same, has a slightly different connotation. However, some people prefer to use inquire when talking about a formal investigation. Inquire and enquire are not used in the same way in american english and british english. Each week, we chat about the quirks and anomalies of the english language. Inquire and enquire both have the same general meaning. Features overview grammar checker sentence rephraser personal trainer text reader. The verbs inquire and enquire are synonyms for the verbs ask or investigate. Enquirers definition of enquirers by the free dictionary. This website uses cookies to ensure you get the best experience. It is difficult to master, even for a native speaker.
Grammar checker by grammarlookup can also help you with this. If you inquire about something, you ask for information about it. Inquiry and enquiry mean investigation, but the words are used in difference contexts. English chinese french german hindi italian portuguese spanish. Mignon fogarty is the creator and host of grammar girl. As verbs the difference between enquire and inquire is that enquire is to make an enquiry while inquire is. Discover delightful childrens books with prime book box, a subscription that delivers new books every 1, 2, or 3 months new customers receive 15% off your. In british english people sometimes distinguish between enquire and inquire, using enquire for the general meaning of ask for information and inquire for the more particular meaning of officially investigate i called to enquire about train times.
Inquire definition in the cambridge english dictionary. She inquired about the librarys rare books collection. Grammarly can save you from misspellings, grammatical and punctuation. The word games words with friends, 4pics1word, word chums, and jumble which is by far one of the most successful of the word games. I called john yesterday and inquiredenquired after his mother. Simply paste or write your text below and click check my writing to get feedback on your writing. Enquiry and inquiry the nouns enquiry and inquiry can mean question, inquest, or investigation. We use cookies to enhance your experience on our website, including to provide targeted advertising and track usage. With nounverb tables for the different cases and tenses links to audio pronunciation and. So now that weve got that out of the way, id like to enquire about enquire vs inquire i know one of your readers wanted to hear about this, and quite frankly, so do i. The word inquire is used in the sense of probe or make a formal investigation.
Both words are derived from the verbs to inquire and to enquire, respectively. However, you can use either spelling in either meaning. Learn the translation for inquire in leo s english. Either spelling can be used, but many people prefer enquire and enquiry for the general sense of ask, and inquire and inquiry. The traditional distinction between the verbs enquire and inquire is that enquire is to be used for general senses of ask, while inquire is reserved for uses meaning make a formal investigation. Inquire definition for englishlanguage learners from. Inquire means to look into, investigate a matter or ask for the information about a particular issue. Grab our free ebook 100 writing mistakes to avoid youtube what is the difference. The word enquire is normally followed by the preposition about.
In practice, enquire and enquiry are more common in british english, and inquire and inquiry are more common in us english, for both informal questions and formal investigations. As such, everything we talk about today applies equally to the verb forms as well as the noun forms. We have words that mean basically the same thing and may even be spelled suspiciously similar. For people who inquire after her, simply say, things. In other words, enquire is another form of inquire. Enquire definition and meaning collins english dictionary. The word inquire is followed often by the preposition1 into. If you want the dictionary definition, just double click on any word. Traditionally, enquire simply meant ask, while inquire was used for formal investigations.
In the us, inquiry and enquiry are interchangeable, but be aware that many will consider enquiry to be a spelling mistake of inquiry. Enquire is more commonly used in british english and inquire is more common in american english. Enquire and inquire are often just different spellings of the same word. Mrs tuck called half an hour ago to inquire whether her order was ready. These are two spellings of the same word, which means to seek information about something or to conduct a formal investigation usually when followed by into. What is the distinction between enquire and inquire. In british english theres a subtle difference between enquiry and inquiry, but americans tend to use inquiry for both, as a result the lines are getting blurred, but generally. English only forum i want to inquire about mr alis late fathers papers english only forum i would like to. On the other hand, the word enquire is used in the sense of question or ask. There is no difference in meaning between these words. Inquire online student handbook and teachers guide.
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