A period of prolonged and intensive questioning or investigation
A judicial or official inquiry
The verdict or finding of an official inquiry
the act of inquiring (to ask about) [n INQUISITIONS]
An ecclesiastical tribunal established by Pope Gregory IX c.1232 for the suppression of heresy. It was active chiefly in northern Italy and southern France, becoming notorious for the use of torture. In 1542 the papal Inquisition was reestablished to combat Protestantism, eventually becoming an organ of papal government