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Curiosity vs Inquiry - What's the difference?

curiosity | inquiry |

As nouns the difference between curiosity and inquiry

is that curiosity is careful, delicate construction; fine workmanship, delicacy of building while inquiry is the act of inquiring; a seeking of information by asking questions; interrogation; a question or questioning.

curiosity

Noun

(curiosities)
  • (obsolete) Careful, delicate construction; fine workmanship, delicacy of building.
  • * 1631 , John Smith, Advertisements , in Kupperman 1988, p. 81:
  • wee built a homely thing like a barne, set upon Cratchets, covered with rafts, sedge, and earth, so also was the walls; the best of our houses of the like curiosity , but the most part farre much worse workmanship [...].
  • Inquisitiveness; the tendency to ask and learn about things by asking questions, investigating, or exploring.
  • * 1886 , (Robert Louis Stevenson), (Strange Case Of Dr Jekyll And Mr Hyde)
  • It was the first time that the lawyer had been received in that part of his friend's quarters; and he eyed the dingy, windowless structure with curiosity , and gazed round with a distasteful sense of strangeness as he crossed the theatre
  • * 1956 , , (The City and the Stars) , p 39:
  • "Certainly there is nothing wrong with Alvin's intelligence, but many of the things that should concern him seem to be a matter of complete indifference. On the other hand, he shows a morbid curiosity regarding subjects which we do not generally discuss."
  • * {{quote-magazine, year=2013, month=September-October, author= Terrie Moffitt] [http://www.americanscientist.org/authors/detail/richie-poulton et] [http://www.americanscientist.org/authors/detail/avshalom-caspi al.
  • , magazine=(American Scientist), title= Lifelong Impact of Early Self-Control , passage=Curiosity about the power of self-control skills, which include conscientiousness, self-discipline, and perseverance, arose from recent empirical observations that preschool Head Start, an ambitious, federally funded program of special services launched in 1965 to boost the intellectual development of needy children, has failed to achieve the goal of boosting IQ scores. But the programs have unexpectedly succeeded in lowering the former pupils’ rates of teen pregnancy, school dropout, delinquency, and work absenteeism.}}
  • A unique or extraordinary object which arouses interest.
  • Synonyms

    * inquisitiveness

    Antonyms

    * ignorance

    Derived terms

    * curiosity killed the cat

    inquiry

    Alternative forms

    * enquiry

    Noun

    (inquiries)
  • The act of inquiring; a seeking of information by asking questions; interrogation; a question or questioning.
  • Search for truth, information, or knowledge; examination of facts or principles; research; investigation; as, physical inquiries.
  • Usage notes

    According to Fowler's Modern English Usage'' (1926), ''inquiry'' should be used in relation to a formal inquest, and ''enquiry'' to the act of questioning. Many (though not all) British writers maintain this distinction; the Oxford English Dictionary, in its entry not updated since 1900, lists ''inquiry'' and ''enquiry'' as equal alternatives, in that order. Some British dictionaries, such as ''Chambers 21st Century Dictionary'' [http://www.chambersharrap.co.uk/chambers/features/chref/chref.py/main?title=21st&query=inquiry], present the two spellings as interchangeable variants in the general sense, but prefer ''inquiry'' for the "formal inquest" sense. In Australian English, ''inquiry'' represents a formal inquest (such as a government investigation) while ''enquiry'' is used in the act of questioning (eg: the customer enquired about the status of his loan application). Both spellings are current in Canadian English, where ''enquiry'' is often associated with scholarly or intellectual research. (See Pam Peters, ''The Cambridge Guide to English Usage , p. 282.) American English usually uses inquiry .

    References

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