WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026
ex•plor•er
(ik splôr′ər, -splōr′-),USA pronunciation n.
- a person or thing that explores.
- a person who investigates unknown regions:the great explorers of the Renaissance.
- Dentistryany instrument used in exploring or sounding a wound, a cavity in a tooth, or the like.
- (cap.) Also called Explor′er Scout′. a person between the ages 14 and 20 who is an active participant in the exploring program sponsored by the Boy Scouts of America.
- Aerospace(cap.) one of a long series of U.S. scientific satellites:Explorer 1(1958) was the first U.S. artificial satellite.
- explore + -er1 1675–85
'explorer' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):
Abruzzi
- Akeley
- Amundsen
- Andrews
- Argall
- Baker
- Balboa
- Banks
- Barents
- Barents Sea
- Barth
- Bartlett
- Beebe
- Bellingshausen
- Bellingshausen Sea
- Bering
- Boone
- Brazza
- Brazzaville
- Bruce
- Burke
- Burton
- Byrd
- Cabeza de Vaca
- Cabot
- Cartier
- Champlain
- Charcot
- Clark
- Columbus
- Cook
- Coronado
- Cousteau
- Covilhã
- Córdoba
- Dampier
- Davis
- De Soto
- Du Chaillu
- Duluth
- Ellsworth
- Eric the Red
- Eyre
- Fernandez
- Fiennes
- Forrest
- Franklin
- Fraser
- Fremont
- Frobisher