inquisitorial

[ in-kwiz-i-tawr-ee-uhl, -tohr- ]
See synonyms for inquisitorial on Thesaurus.com
adjective
  1. of or relating to an inquisitor or inquisition.

  2. exercising the office of an inquisitor.

  1. Law.

    • pertaining to a trial with one person or group inquiring into the facts and acting as both prosecutor and judge.

    • pertaining to secret criminal prosecutions.

  2. resembling an inquisitor in harshness or intrusiveness.

  3. inquisitive; prying.

Origin of inquisitorial

1
1755–65; <Medieval Latin inquīsītōri(us) (Latin inquīsītōr-, stem of inquīsītorinquisitor + -ius adj. suffix) + -al1

Other words from inquisitorial

  • in·quis·i·to·ri·al·ly, adverb
  • in·quis·i·to·ri·al·ness, noun
  • un·in·quis·i·to·ri·al, adjective
  • un·in·quis·i·to·ri·al·ly, adverb

Words Nearby inquisitorial

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use inquisitorial in a sentence

  • Casting a quick, inquisitorial glance at Sue, he shrugged his shoulders in token of indifference and said no more.

  • Fire, not water, became the grand element of inquisitorial purification.

    Gatherings From Spain | Richard Ford

British Dictionary definitions for inquisitorial

inquisitorial

/ (ɪnˌkwɪzɪˈtɔːrɪəl) /


adjective
  1. of, relating to, or resembling inquisition or an inquisitor

  2. offensively curious; prying

  1. law denoting criminal procedure in which one party is both prosecutor and judge, or in which the trial is held in secret: Compare accusatorial (def. 2)

Derived forms of inquisitorial

  • inquisitorially, adverb
  • inquisitorialness, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012