explore
ex·plore/ɪkˈsploɹ/verb, noun
explore is spelled E-X-P-L-O-R-E: 7 letters and 2 syllables (ex·plore). It appears 20 times per million words in written English, the 4,224th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a verb, explore means “To examine or investigate something systematically” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in explore?
| Letters | 7: E-X-P-L-O-R-E |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2: ex·plore |
| In writing | 20 times per million words; the 4,224th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is explore?
Explore appears 20 times per million words in written English, the 4,224th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce explore?
- UK /ɪkˈsplɔː/
- US /ɪkˈsploɹ/
- /ɪkˈsplo(ː)ɹ/
Explore has 2 syllables, split ex·plore in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-explore.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with explore?
The 12 most written words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as explore from its last stressed vowel (/oɹ/):
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of explore
- explores present, singular, he/she/it, plural
- exploring participle, present
- explored participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does explore mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
verb
- 1
obsoleteTo seek for something or after someone.
- 2
To examine or investigate something systematically.
The committee has been exploring alternative solutions to the problem at hand.
- 3
To travel somewhere in search of discovery.
It was around that time that the expedition began exploring the Arctic Circle.
- 4
To examine diagnostically.
- 5
To (seek) experience first hand.
It is normal for a boy of this age to be exploring his sexuality.
- 6
To be engaged exploring in any of the above senses.
He was too busy exploring to notice his son needed his guidance.
- 7
To wander without any particular aim or purpose.
The boys explored all around till cold and hunger drove them back to the campfire one by one.
- 8
To seek sexual variety, to sow one's wild oats.
noun
- 1
colloquialAn exploration; a tour of a place to see what it is like.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Explore in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | explorer |
| German | erforschen , untersuchen |
| Portuguese | explorar , examinar |
| Spanish | explorar |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does explore come from?
From Middle French explorer, from Latin explōrāre (“to investigate, search out”), itself said to be originally a hunters' term meaning "to set up a loud cry", from ex- (“out”) + plōrāre (“to cry”), but the second element is also explained as "to make to flow" (from pluere (“to flow”)). Displaced native Old English rāsian.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).