inquisitive

English

Etymology

Late 14th century, from Old French inquisitif, from Late Latin inquisitivus, from Latin inquisitus, past participle of inquirere. See also inquire.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɪŋˈkwɪzətɪv/

Adjective

inquisitive (comparative more inquisitive, superlative most inquisitive)

1. Eager to acquire knowledge.
   • I. Watts

     A young, inquisitive, and sprightly genius.

2. Too curious; overly interested; nosy.
   • Broome

     A wise man is not inquisitive about things impertinent.

   • 1922 February, James Joyce, Ulysses, Paris: Shakespeare & Co.; Sylvia Beach, OCLC 560090630; republished London: Published for the Egoist Press, London by John Rodker, Paris, October 1922, OCLC 2297483:
     Episode 16

     Everybody gets their own ration of luck, they say. Now you mention it his face was familiar to me. But, leaving that for the moment, how much did you part with, he queried, if I am not too inquisitive?

Derived terms

• inquisitively
• inquisitiveness

Translations

eager to acquire knowledge

• Armenian: հետաքրքրասեր (hy) (hetakʿrkʿraser)
• Cebuano: sukitsukiton
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 好奇 (zh) (hàoqí)

• Danish: nysgerrig, videnbegærlig
• Dutch: nieuwsgierig (nl), inquisitief
• Esperanto: scivola
• Finnish: utelias (fi), tiedonhaluinen, tiedonjanoinen (fi)
• French: inquisitif (fr)
• German: neugierig (de)
• Japanese: 知りたがる (ja) (しりたがる, shiritagaru)

• Latvian: ziņkārīgs, ziņkārs
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: vitebegjærlig, nysgjerrig (no)

• Portuguese: inquisitivo (pt)
• Russian: любозна́тельный (ru) (ljuboznátelʹnyj), пытли́вый (ru) (pytlívyj), любопы́тный (ru) (ljubopýtnyj)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: радознао, знатижељан

  Roman: radoznao (sh), znatiželjan (sh)

• Spanish: inquisitivo
• Swedish: vetgirig (sv)
• Westrobothnian: vaitgeru

too curious; overly interested; nosy

• French: curieux (fr)
• German: neugierig (de)
• Italian: curioso (it), indiscreto (it)
• Maori: mahira
• Polish: ciekawski (pl), wścibski (pl)

• Portuguese: inquisitivo (pt), enxerido (pt), intrometido (pt)
• Russian: (назо́йливо) любопы́тный (ru) (ljubopýtnyj)
• Spanish: inquisitivo, curioso (es)
• Swedish: nyfiken (sv)

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French

Adjective

inquisitive

1. feminine singular of inquisitif

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Italian

Adjective

inquisitive

1. feminine plural of inquisitivo