durchsuchen

Definition & meaning

durchsuchen means to search something or someone thoroughly, usually in order to find a particular object, person, piece of information, or evidence.

It can be used in several related ways:

1. To search a place or object

   • to search a room, house, bag, database, or document carefully
   • Die Polizei durchsucht die Wohnung. — “The police are searching the apartment.”

2. To search a person

   • to search someone, often for weapons or concealed objects
   • Der Mann wurde durchsucht. — “The man was searched.”

3. To search through text or data

   • to look through a text, website, or collection for specific information
   • Ich durchsuche den Text nach Fehlern. — “I am searching the text for errors.”

The verb generally suggests a systematic or thorough search, rather than merely looking for something casually.

Grammar & Word origin

durchsuchen is a strong? Actually weak verb. Need say weak verb. It is generally an inseparable verb in this meaning:

• Infinitive: durchsuchen ↗
• Present: ich durchsuche
• Simple past: ich durchsuchte
• Past participle: durchsucht
• Auxiliary: haben

Example:
Die Beamten haben das Gebäude durchsucht. — “The officers searched the building.”

It is normally used transitively with an accusative object:

• jemanden durchsuchen — to search someone
• etwas durchsuchen — to search something

The word consists of:

• durch ↗ — through
• suchen ↗ — to search, look for

Literally, it means “to search through.”

Synonyms & antonyms

Synonyms

• absuchen ↗ — to search an area or object systematically; often emphasizes covering the whole area.
• durchstöbern ↗ — to rummage or browse through something, usually in a less formal or less methodical way.
• nach etwas suchen [?](vocabuo://word/nach etwas suchen) — to look for something; more general and often less thorough than durchsuchen.
• filzen ↗ — to search a person or their belongings; colloquial and sometimes associated with police or security checks.

Antonyms

There is no exact opposite in every context, but possible opposites include:

• übersehen ↗ — to overlook or fail to notice something.
• ignorieren ↗ — to ignore something deliberately.
• in Ruhe lassen [?](vocabuo://word/in Ruhe lassen) — to leave someone or something alone, especially as the opposite of searching or inspecting it.

Common phrases & collocations

• eine Wohnung durchsuchen [?](vocabuo://word/eine Wohnung durchsuchen) — to search an apartment
• ein Haus durchsuchen [?](vocabuo://word/ein Haus durchsuchen) — to search a house
• eine Tasche durchsuchen [?](vocabuo://word/eine Tasche durchsuchen) — to search a bag
• jemanden durchsuchen [?](vocabuo://word jemandem durchsuchen) — to search someone
• das Internet durchsuchen [?](vocabuo://word/das Internet durchsuchen) — to search the internet
• eine Datei nach etwas durchsuchen [?](vocabuo://word eine Datei nach etwas durchsuchen) — to search a file for something
• nach Fehlern durchsuchen [?](vocabuo://word nach Fehlern durchsuchen) — to search for errors