perscrutation

English

Etymology

From Latin perscrūtātiō, from the past participle stem of perscrūtor.

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /pəːskɹuːˈteɪʃən/

Noun

perscrutation (plural perscrutations)

1. (rare) A thorough searching; a minute inquiry or scrutiny.
   • 1603, John Florio, translating Michel de Montaigne, Folio Society 2006, vol. 1 p. 103:

     The first and universall reasons are of a hard perscrutation.

   • 1843 April, Thomas Carlyle, “ch. 8, The Election”, in Past and Present, American edition, Boston, Mass.: Charles C[offin] Little and James Brown, published 1843, →OCLC, book II (The Ancient Monk):

     Such guessing, visioning, dim perscrutation of the momentous future: the very clothmakers, old women, all townsfolk speak of it