thorough

B1 Topic:Grammar & Function Words

US /ˈθʌɹoʊ/ UK /ˈθʌɹə/ See IPA manual

Minimal pairs

Sounds like furrow /θ/ vs /f/

adj prep noun name Freq #7298

Meanings

1

adj
Careful and complete, leaving nothing out.

The police carried out a thorough investigation.
2

adj
Complete in every way; absolute.

The trip was a thorough waste of time.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 adj · careful and complete,... comprehensive exhaustive

2 adj · complete in every way;... downright utter

More meticulous outright rigorous scrupulous total unmitigated

Opposites

cursory superficialsurface-level

Word family

Derived forms thorough-stitchthoroughbred thoroughfare thoroughgoing thoroughlythoroughnessthoroughsped

Common collocations

thorough search Adjective + noun

Etymology

From Middle English thoruȝ, þoruȝ, from Old English þuruh, a byform of Old English þurh, whence comes English through. The adjective derives from the preposition and adverb. The word developed a syllabic form in cases where the word was fully stressed: when it was used as an adverb, adjective, or noun, and less commonly when used as a preposition.

*terh₂- Proto-Indo-European thoruȝ Middle English þuruh Old English þurh Old English

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Grammar & Function Words

# thorough

**Type:** Word
**Level:** B1
**Part of speech:** adj, prep, noun, name
**IPA (US):** ˈθʌɹoʊ
**IPA (UK):** ˈθʌɹə
**Frequency rank:** 7298

## Meanings
1. Careful and complete, leaving nothing out.
2. Complete in every way; absolute.

## Examples
- The police carried out a thorough investigation.
- The trip was a thorough waste of time.

## Synonyms
- comprehensive
- meticulous
- outright
- rigorous
- scrupulous
- total
- unmitigated

## Antonyms
- cursory
- superficial
- surface-level

## Derived Forms
- thorough-stitch
- thoroughbred
- thoroughfare
- thoroughgoing
- thoroughly
- thoroughness
- thoroughsped

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: *terh₂-
- Root: thoruȝ
- Root: þuruh
- Root: þurh

## Etymology
From Middle English thoruȝ, þoruȝ, from Old English þuruh, a byform of Old English þurh, whence comes English through. The adjective derives from the preposition and adverb. The word developed a syllabic form in cases where the word was fully stressed: when it was used as an adverb, adjective, or noun, and less commonly when used as a preposition.

## AI Etymology
Thorough is from Middle English thoruȝ, þoruȝ, from Old English þuruh, a byform of Old English þurh, whence comes English through. The adjective derives from the preposition and adverb. The word developed a syllabic form in cases where the word was fully stressed: when it was used as an adverb, adjective, or noun, and less commonly when used as a preposition. In present-day use, it can mean careful and complete, leaving nothing out, or complete in every way; absolute.

## Topics
- Grammar & Function Words

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thorough

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