exhaustive
adjective
ex·haus·tive
ig-ˈzȯ-stiv 
: including all possibilities : thorough
conducted an exhaustive search
Examples of exhaustive in a Sentence
The list was long but not exhaustive.
after an exhaustive search of our house, we still hadn't found the cat
Recent Examples on the Web
Six adults and a child were rescued from the water, but three children recovered from the lake after an intensive search were unresponsive to exhaustive lifesaving measures administered as soon as they were found, police said.
—
Los Angeles Times,
4 July 2026
Raymond said on Friday that an exhaustive review of video surveillance footage from the days leading up to the explosion allegedly captured Berezovk making several reconnaissance visits to the building.
—
Bill Hutchinson,
ABC News,
3 July 2026
Attrition is costly and exhaustive and is the silent killer of some businesses.
—
Expert Panel®,
Forbes.com,
29 June 2026
Last winter, before launching a series of public polls on the 2025 Democratic primary race for mayor of New York, our firm conducted an exhaustive analysis of the NYC Board of Elections voter file, examining primary turnout trends across multiple years under different political scenarios.
—
Bradley Honan,
New York Daily News,
28 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for exhaustive
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Los Angeles Times,
4 July 2026
Raymond said on Friday that an exhaustive review of video surveillance footage from the days leading up to the explosion allegedly captured Berezovk making several reconnaissance visits to the building.
—
Bill Hutchinson,
ABC News,
3 July 2026
Attrition is costly and exhaustive and is the silent killer of some businesses.
—
Expert Panel®,
Forbes.com,
29 June 2026
Last winter, before launching a series of public polls on the 2025 Democratic primary race for mayor of New York, our firm conducted an exhaustive analysis of the NYC Board of Elections voter file, examining primary turnout trends across multiple years under different political scenarios.
—
Bradley Honan,
New York Daily News,
28 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for exhaustive
Cite this Entry
“Exhaustive.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/exhaustive. Accessed 7 Jul. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
exhaustive
adjective
ex·haus·tive
ig-ˈzȯ-stiv
: trying all possibilities : thorough
an exhaustive search
exhaustively
adverb
exhaustiveness
noun
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
