Definition of "probe" []

• An exploratory action, expedition, or device, especially one designed to investigate and obtain information on a remote or unknown region. (noun)
• A slender, flexible surgical instrument used to explore a wound or body cavity. (noun)
• Biology A substance, such as DNA, that is radioactively labeled or otherwise marked and used to detect or identify another substance in a sample. (noun)
• The act of exploring or searching with or as if with a device or instrument. (noun)
• An investigation into unfamiliar matters or questionable activities; a penetrating inquiry: a congressional probe into price fixing. See Synonyms at inquiry. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "No one on Earth knows how to communicate with the probe, but upon returning to Earth, Spock and the rest of the Enterprise crew learn that the probe is attempting to communicate with humpback whales, which have been extinct since the 21st century."
• "Morrison says the word "probe," as in "Let's probe the significance of this," and Colfer says, "Interesting word choice.""
• "The FBI would say only that the raids were part of what it called a probe of "activities concerning the material support of terrorism.""