rechercher

Rechercher is a French verb meaning to search or to research. It can refer to looking for a physical object as well as to conducting systematic inquiry into a topic. In modern usage, the sense of studying something in depth is common in academic, professional, and digital contexts.

Etymology and form: Rechercher is formed by the prefix re- attached to chercher (to search). In current usage, it covers both “to search again” and, more often, “to research.” It is a regular first-group verb, ending in -er and conjugated like other -er verbs.

Conjugation and usage notes: As a regular -er verb, its present tense forms are je recherche, tu recherches, il/elle/on recherche, nous recherchons, vous recherchez, ils/elles recherchent. The past participle is recherché (as in j’ai recherché). The gerund is en recherchant. The imperfect is je/recherchais, and the future is je/rechercherai. In many contexts, the noun la recherche is used for “research,” while forse le chercheur (researcher) and les recherches (the searches or the research activities) appear in related phrases.

Common meanings and collocations: To rechercher quelque chose means to search for something; faire des recherches means to conduct research. In everyday language, chercher remains more general and common for physical searching, while rechercher is often preferred in formal or scholarly contexts. Recherché as an adjective can mean sought-after or well-studied.

Examples: Je dois rechercher des informations pour mon exposé. Ils recherchent des solutions à ce problème. La recherche scientifique influence les politiques publiques. Dans une interface, un bouton intitulé Rechercher permet d’effectuer une recherche.