# prospecting

Pronunciation: US say "PRAH-spekt-ing" /ˈpɹɑspɛktɪŋ/; UK say "pruh-SPEK-ting" /pɹəˈspɛktɪŋ/

## Noun

1. The activity of exploring and searching land for valuable mineral deposits such as gold, ore, or oil.
   - Simple: The work of searching the ground for gold, metals, or other valuable things.
   - _Prospecting in the Yukon drew thousands of hopefuls during the gold rush._
   - _Modern prospecting relies on satellite imagery and geochemical sampling rather than a pan and shovel._

## Verb

2. Present participle and gerund of prospect. — present participle and gerund of prospect
   - Simple: Present participle of prospect. Use this -ing form when the searching is happening right now.
   - _The company is prospecting for copper in the northern ranges._
   - _They spent the whole season prospecting through unmapped territory._

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/prospecting (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).