inquiry, research, enquiry - a search for knowledge; "their pottery deserves more research than it has received"

work - activity directed toward making or doing something; "she checked several points needing further work"

analysis - an investigation of the component parts of a whole and their relations in making up the whole

counting, enumeration, numeration, count, reckoning, tally - the act of counting; "the counting continued for several hours"

police investigation, police work - the investigation of criminal activities

empiricism - the application of empirical methods in any art or science

examination, scrutiny - the act of examining something closely (as for mistakes)

testing, examination - the act of giving students or candidates a test (as by questions) to determine what they know or have learned

enquiry, inquiry - a systematic investigation of a matter of public interest

research - systematic investigation to establish facts

search - an investigation seeking answers; "a thorough search of the ledgers revealed nothing"; "the outcome justified the search"

tabulation - the act of putting into tabular form; "the tabulation of the results"

wiretap, tap - the act of tapping a telephone or telegraph line to get information