detect
Usage
What are other ways to say detect?
To detect implies becoming aware of something that had been obscure, secret, or concealed: to detect a flaw in reasoning. To ascertain is to verify facts by inquiry or analysis: to ascertain the truth about an event. To learn is to add to one's knowledge or information: to learn a language. The verb discover is used with objective clauses as a synonym of learn in order to suggest that the new information acquired is surprising to the learner: I discovered that she had been married before.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
This means we’ll have to continue to rely on ground- and space-based telescopes to detect anything.
From Science Daily • Jun. 9, 2026
"It's hidden and in people's homes, it's not always easy to detect."
From BBC • Jun. 8, 2026
Though time-consuming, it can detect 95% of cancers and a similar percentage of high-risk polyps.
From MarketWatch • Jun. 4, 2026
The networks that detect outbreaks early, move supplies rapidly, and support front-line responders are often invisible.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 2, 2026
“Or maybe goats are nocturnal. Some animals never sleep. Sheep never do, not that I could detect; whenever you look at them they’re looking back. Expecting to be fed.”
From "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?" by Philip K. Dick
Vocabulary lists containing detect
Jim Burke's Academic Vocabulary List
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List 9
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