Practice
Inquiry or enquiry: choose the spelling for your reader
Sign in to saveAn American store may invite customer inquiries. A British form may ask for enquiries. In both cases, the writer is asking for information; the spelling signals a regional or editorial choice.
Choose inquiry or enquiry according to your reader, regional variety, and any house style you need to follow.
Read and practice
Read the examples and try the written questions in this guide. Listening recordings are not available for this lesson yet.
Try the written questions
inquiry / enquiry /ɪnˈkwaɪəri/ /ɪnˈkwaɪəri/
The short answer
Use inquiry in American English. In British English, enquiry is common for requests for information, while inquiry is also possible and is often used for formal investigations. Follow the spelling used by your organization or publication.
Please send your inquiry about the course fee by email.
Why it works: Inquiry is the normal spelling for a request for information in American English.
5 more examples
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The museum received an inquiry about wheelchair access.
This is a request for information. Inquiry is the usual American spelling.
Not this:The museum received
an enquiry about wheelchair access. What changes: This spelling is common in British English and keeps the same meaning. -
The company answered every customer inquiry within two days.
For a U.S. company, inquiry is a natural spelling for a customer's question.
Not this:The company answered every
customer enquirywithin two days. What changes: A British company may choose enquiry for the same routine customer question. -
The minister announced a public inquiry into the bridge failure.
Inquiry is widely used for a formal investigation, including in British English.
Not this:The newspaper reported on the
public enquiryinto the bridge failure. What changes: Enquiry can also occur in British writing, though an organization may prefer inquiry for this formal meaning. -
Her research began with an inquiry into local water quality.
Inquiry can mean an organized examination or research process.
Not this:Her research began with
an enquiry into local water quality. What changes: The meaning remains an examination, but the spelling should match the publication's chosen variety. -
For further inquiries, contact the admissions office.
The plural inquiries follows the American spelling inquiry.
Not this:For
further enquiries, contact the admissions office. What changes: The plural enquiries follows the British spelling enquiry.
Read the full guide
First identify the reader and the writing style. For a U.S. audience, inquiry is the safe standard choice. For a British audience, check the publication's style: it may use enquiry for routine questions, or it may use inquiry for every meaning.
Start with your reader's variety of English
Inquiry is the usual U.S. spelling for both a request for information and an investigation. If you are writing for an American school, employer, customer, or publication, use inquiry unless its style guide says otherwise.
Send your inquiry to the housing office before Friday.
The sentence asks for information, and the U.S. spelling is inquiry.
Recognize the common British spelling
Enquiry is chiefly a British spelling. You may see it on a British website, in a customer-service message, or on a form that asks for general enquiries. It has the same basic meaning as inquiry.
The travel company replied to our enquiry about train tickets.
U.S. spelling: an inquiry about train tickets. Common British spelling: an enquiry about train tickets.
Use the investigation distinction only when the style requires it
Some British styles make a useful distinction: enquiry for a simple question and inquiry for a formal investigation. For example, a shop may answer an enquiry, while a public body may begin an inquiry. Other British styles use inquiry for both meanings. Check a reliable style guide for the document you are writing.
The council opened an inquiry into the safety complaint.
Here inquiry describes an official effort to find facts. The formal meaning supports the i spelling in styles that make the distinction.
Keep related words in the same spelling family
The plural follows the noun you choose: inquiries or enquiries. The related verbs are inquire and enquire. If your document uses enquiry, write enquiries and enquire unless a fixed name or quotation uses another spelling.
The office receives many enquiries during the summer.
Singular and plural stay together: inquiry and inquiries; enquiry and enquiries.
Make a consistent choice in real documents
Read the surrounding text before you change a spelling. A British organization may deliberately use enquiry in its contact form, while an American organization will usually use inquiry. In a mixed-audience document, follow the named style guide or choose one variety and use it throughout.
You are writing a short email for a U.S. college. Which noun fits: inquiry or enquiry?
Use inquiry. It is the normal American spelling for a request for information.
Before you go
Remember this
Inquiry is standard in American English. Enquiry is chiefly British, especially for an ordinary request for information, but British English also uses inquiry. Treat the investigation distinction as a possible house-style rule, then keep one spelling consistent.
Practice with the written examples
You can practice with the written questions in the Learn tab. Each answer includes an explanation.
Try the written questionsListening test not available yet
This lesson does not have the recordings needed for a listening test. Use the written questions in the guide to check your understanding.
Try the written questionsQuestions about "Inquiry or enquiry: choose the spelling for your reader"
What is the difference between inquiry and enquiry?
They have the same basic meanings: a request for information or an investigation. Inquiry is the usual American spelling. Enquiry is chiefly British, although inquiry is also used in British English. Choose the spelling that matches your audience and keep it consistent.
The museum received an inquiry about wheelchair access.
Should I use inquiry or enquiry in American English?
Use inquiry in American English. It is used for a question, a request for information, an examination, or an official investigation. Enquiry may be understood by U.S. readers, but it is not the usual American spelling.
The museum received an enquiry about wheelchair access.
Should I use inquiry or enquiry in British English?
Either spelling can appear in British English. Enquiry is common for a routine request for information, while inquiry is also accepted and often appears in formal contexts. Follow the style used by the British organization, publisher, or document you are writing for.
The company answered every customer inquiry within two days.
Is an inquiry always a formal investigation?
No. Inquiry can mean a simple request for information as well as an investigation. Some British style guides reserve inquiry for a formal investigation and use enquiry for an ordinary question, but many writers do not make that spelling distinction.
The company answered every customer enquiry within two days.
What are the plural forms of inquiry and enquiry?
The plural of inquiry is inquiries, and the plural of enquiry is enquiries. Keep the spelling family consistent in one document. For example, an American contact page may use inquiries, while a British page may use enquiries.
The minister announced a public inquiry into the bridge failure.