Word: exhaustive (adjective)

Associations

"Exhaustive" means complete and including everything. It is used when something covers all parts or details without leaving anything out.

• An exhaustive list means a list that has every possible item.
• An exhaustive search means looking everywhere and checking everything carefully.
• An exhaustive report means a report that covers every detail about a topic. A common synonym is "comprehensive." The difference is that "exhaustive" often suggests very careful and thorough work, sometimes even more detailed than "comprehensive."

Substitution

You can use words like:

• thorough (focuses on careful and detailed work)
• complete (means nothing is missing)
• comprehensive (means covering all parts, but sometimes less intense than exhaustive) Changing the word may change the feeling. For example, "thorough" feels careful, but "exhaustive" feels very detailed and maybe even long.

Deconstruction

The root word is "exhaust," which means to use up or finish something completely. The suffix "-ive" means "having the quality of." So, "exhaustive" means having the quality of using up all parts or covering everything fully.

Inquiry

• Can you think of a time when you had to do an exhaustive search for something?
• How would you feel if a teacher gave you an exhaustive list of topics to study?
• Can you find other adjectives that describe something very detailed or complete? How are they different from "exhaustive"?