inquisitive

inquisitive — adjective

1. eager to learn about many different things or to find out details about other pe

1.adjectiveB2
Definition

eager to learn about many different things or to find out details about other people's lives — this can be a positive quality, as in an inquisitive child who keeps asking questions, or a negative one, as in an inquisitive neighbour who pries into private matters.

Example

Gabriel's inquisitive nature led him to spend hours reading about the history of ancient Egypt.

positive: inquisitive nature + purpose infinitive

The new neighbour grew tired of Dahlia's inquisitive questions about her salary and personal life.

negative: inquisitive questions about [private matters]

Common collocations
  • inquisitive mind
  • inquisitive nature
  • inquisitive child
  • inquisitive journalist
  • inquisitive neighbour
  • inquisitive look
  • inquisitive stare
  • inquisitive questions
  • inquisitive about
Synonyms
  • curious

    more neutral and more common; does not carry the negative 'nosy' implication by default

  • nosy

    informal and always negative; refers specifically to prying into others' private lives

  • inquiring

    formal and positive; suggests serious intellectual curiosity, never nosiness

  • prying

    always negative; focuses on the act of intrusively seeking private information

Antonyms

Grammar Patterns

inquisitive + noun (attributive)

be/seem + inquisitive (predicative)

Usage Note

The word can carry either a positive or a negative connotation depending on context. A positive inquisitive person has a genuine thirst for knowledge; a negative one is nosy and asks about matters that are not their concern. In formal writing the word tends toward the positive (an inquisitive mind), while in everyday speech about people's behaviour it can feel critical (an inquisitive neighbour).

Common Mistakes

My little sister is very inquisitive about my private diary.' (implies nosiness is welcome)
My little sister is very curious about the world around her.
Use 'curious' for neutral/positive interest and 'inquisitive' when a hint of prying or excessive questioning fits the context.

Word family

  • inquisitiveness
    nounC1
  • inquisitively
    adverbC1

Synonym discussion

Sense: adjective/1

All four words describe a desire to know something, but they differ sharply in tone and scope. Curious is the broadest and most neutral term — a curious person may want to learn about stars, cooking, or a friend's weekend plans without any negative judgement. Nosy is informal and always disapproving: a nosy neighbour eavesdrops or reads your mail. Inquiring is the most formal and carries a wholly positive flavour, typically used for intellectual or scientific curiosity (an inquiring mind). Prying is strongly negative and focuses on the specific act of forcing information from someone who does not want to share it. If you want to praise a student's eagerness to learn, say 'an inquiring mind' or 'a curious learner'; if you want to criticise someone who cannot mind their own business, choose 'nosy' or 'prying'.

curious ↗nosy ↗inquiringprying

Common collocations

Nouns

Adverbs

Phrases

  • inquisitive about
  • inquisitive by nature

Prepositions

Etymology

LatinFrenchEnglish

From Latin 'inquisitīvus' (fond of making inquiries), built from 'in-' (into) + 'quaerere' (to ask, seek). The word passed through French before entering English in the 1600s. Its early uses focused on legal investigation, but by the 1700s it had broadened to describe general curiosity about all kinds of things.