What does investigate mean?
Word: Investigate
Part of Speech: Verb
Meaning: Investigate means to look closely at the facts of something, such as a problem or an event, to find out what really happened or why.
Synonyms: examine, explore, look into
How do you spell investigate?
Syllables: in - ves - ti - gate
Tricky part: After the st comes an i, not an a: many children write investagate because the vowel is said so lightly.
Watch out for: investagate, investegate
Memory tip: Stop, Think, Investigate: just as I follows S and T in that saying, an i follows the s-t in investigate.
Investigate in a sentence
Example 1: Our science club wants to investigate why some seeds sprout faster than others.
Example 2: Dad lifted the bonnet to investigate the rattling noise in the car.
Example 3: Julia investigated how much water her family used in a single day.
Fun Fact
Scientists who investigated why the daytime sky is blue found that air scatters blue sunlight far more than red light.
Practise the CREST Way
Spell Probe
Fill the blanks with 'e' and 'a' in that order. Which option gives the meaning of that word?
1. inv__stig__te 2. n__vig__te 3. c__ltiv__te 4. acc__mmod__te
a) to give someone a room or a place to stay
b) to search for the reasons or facts behind something
c) to prepare land and grow crops on it
d) to find the way to a place, for example on a ship or with a map
Show answer
b) to search for the reasons or facts behind something. With e and then a, the first word becomes investigate, searching out the facts.
Sound Check
In which word is 'g' pronounced differently?
a) investigate
b) navigate
c) original
d) irrigate
Show answer
c) original. The g in original is soft, like a j; the others have a hard g as in goat.
Spell Spies
Choose the incorrectly spelt word:
a) evidence
b) experimant
c) investigate
d) observe
Show answer
b) experimant. The vowel before the -nt in experiment is an e, easy to miss because it is said so lightly.
Word Tally
Score 3 marks for each correctly spelt word. What is the total score?
investigate, laboratery, hypothesis, microscope, observation
a) 12
b) 15
c) 6
d) 9
Show answer
a) 12. Laboratory has an o after the t; the other four words earn 3 marks each.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. A teacher wants to investigate why the classroom plants are wilting. What should she do first?
a) Ask the class to stop talking about it
b) Buy a new set of plants for the room
c) Move the plants to the corridor straight away
d) Check how much water and sunlight they get
Show answer
d) Check how much water and sunlight they get
2. Ivan heard a strange clicking sound in the kitchen, so he went to investigate. What did he do?
a) He tried to make the sound louder
b) He told everyone to forget about it
c) He went to find out what was making it
d) He shut the door and walked away
Show answer
c) He went to find out what was making it
