Escrutar

Escrutar is a verb used in Spanish and Portuguese that means to examine something with close attention, to scrutinize, or to scan and peer into in search of details. The sense emphasizes thoroughness, inspection, or investigation, often with a degree of skepticism or concentration.

Etymology and sense: Escrutar likely derives from Latin scrutari, influenced by French scruter or Italian scrutare, terms associated with rummaging and thorough searching. In both languages, the verb carries a connotation of digging into information, objects, or phenomena to uncover minutiae or truth.

Usage: In Spanish, escrutar can be applied to data, documents, testimonies, or even the sky or a face, conveying meticulous examination or probing inquiry. It is slightly more literary or formal than synonyms like examinar or observar and can imply uncovering hidden details. In Portuguese, the usage parallels the Spanish, with a strong sense of careful analysis or inspection. Related terms include escudriñar (often more intense) and observar (more general).

Examples:

- El investigador escrutó los datos para detectar inconsistencias.

- Es necesario escrutar el cielo nocturno para observar las estrellas más débiles.

- El juez escrutó las pruebas antes de dictar sentencia.

Conjugation notes: In Spanish, present tense forms include escruto, escrutas, escruta, escrutamos, escrutáis, escrutan; pretérito perfecto simple forms are escruté, escrutaste, escrutó, escrutamos, escrutasteis, escrutaron. In Portuguese, present tense forms include eu escruto, tu escrutas, ele escruta, nós escrutamos, vós escruteis, eles escrutam; pretérito perfeito include eu escrutei, ele escrutou, nós escrutamos, eles scrutaram.

See also: escrutinio, escudriñar, scrutinize.