interrogation

noun

in·​ter·​ro·​ga·​tion in-ˌter-ə-ˈgā-shən How to pronounce interrogation (audio)
plural interrogations
: the act of interrogating someone or something: such as
a
: a formal and systematic questioning
She conducted a skillful interrogation of the witness.
It was old-fashioned interrogation and eavesdropping that first led U.S. intelligence agents to the … plotters.Michael Isikoff
And during interrogation, instead of just listening for inconsistencies in what is said, agents are being taught to look for minute physical reactions on the faces of people being questioned.Ann Davis et al.
b
: the sending of an electronic signal intended to trigger a particular response from something (such as a transponder)
The airborne equipment measures the time between the interrogation and the return signal, and converts this time measurement into a mileage reading on our instrument panel, on either a dial or digital counter.Joseph W. Benkert
interrogational adjective

Examples of interrogation in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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Last year, the department paid out nearly $1 million to settle with a man who said that, over the course of a 17-hour interrogation, officers coerced him into confessing to a murder that never took place. Sonja Sharp, Los Angeles Times, 26 May 2025 The comments on Kobayashi’s posts are still publicly accessible, though some social media users have turned them into something more closely resembling an interrogation room. Larisha Paul, Rolling Stone, 20 May 2025 The explosions knocked both Hondo and Rykov to the ground and barricaded them in the interrogation room. Esther Kang, People.com, 17 May 2025 What happens to Rykov? After an attack on a CIA convoy, Hondo brings Rykov back to a SWAT interrogation room. Randall Colburn, EW.com, 17 May 2025 See All Example Sentences for interrogation

Word History

First Known Use

1534, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of interrogation was in 1534

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Cite this Entry

“Interrogation.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/interrogation. Accessed 4 Jun. 2025.

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