Etymograph

English

investigation

Investigation comes from Latin investigatio ‘inquiry, investigation’, and goes back to vestīgō ‘to follow a track, track, search’.

  1. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEvestīgō1‘to follow a track’
  2. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEinvestīgō2‘track’
  3. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEinvestigatio3‘inquiry’
  4. Old Frenchc. 842–1400investigacion3
  5. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500investigacioun3
  6. Englishearliest quotation 1960investigation3

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Latin investigo
  2. 2 Wiktionary, Latin investigatio
  3. 3 Wiktionary, English investigation
  4. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1960, Wanton Damage in Trains: “Railway police are making a full investigation into the…”.

Lineage

  1. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEvestīgōWiktionary, Latin investigo‘to follow a track’
  2. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEinvestīgōWiktionary, Latin investigatio‘track’
  3. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEinvestigatioWiktionary, English investigation‘inquiry’
  4. Old Frenchc. 842–1400investigacionWiktionary, English investigation
  5. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500investigaciounWiktionary, English investigation
  6. Englishearliest quotation 1960investigationWiktionary, English investigation. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1960, Wanton Damage in Trains: “Railway police are making a full investigation into the…”

Linked words

through Latin vestīgium ‘footprint, track’

vestigial, vestige, 3 more

Today it means

noun The act of investigating; the process of inquiring into or following up; research, especially patient or thorough inquiry or examination

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “investigation”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Latin investigo, Latin investigatio. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.

Etymograph / Latin vestīgō / investigation

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