scrutiny

noun

1. (uncountable, usually)Intense study of someone or something.

   “Thenceforth I thought thee worth my nearer view / And narrower scrutiny.”

   “So much for the occupant of the britscha, who waits, as all the horses are out at a ball or a scrutiny.”

   “Younger [Customs] examiners, who, perhaps, have not yet acquired the intuition resulting from years of experience, seem partly responsible for the closer examination of incoming luggage. Not only is this closer scrutiny arousing feelings of resentment among passengers, but it is causing serious delays in the departure of boat trains, many of which have been reaching their destinations two or three hours late.”

   “Certainly, upon closer scrutiny, it becomes apparent that current usage rather than eighteenth-century usage is the basis of the interpretation of fanny as a sexual term.”

2. (uncountable, usually)Thorough inspection of a situation or a case.

   “come under scrutiny”

   “A number of other mergers of U.S. railroads are mooted, but the I.C.C. [Interstate Commerce Commission] has made it clear that its assent to the N.& W.-Virginian proposal, which was unopposed by competitors or stockholders, should not be taken as an indication that others will swiftly pass its scrutiny.”

3. (uncountable, usually)An examination of catechumens, in the last week of Lent, who were to receive baptism on Easter Day.
4. (uncountable, usually)A ticket, or little paper billet, on which a vote is written.
5. (uncountable, usually)An examination by a committee of the votes given at an election, for the purpose of correcting the poll.

   “The Returning Officer on the day appointed to make a scrutiny of the poll”

verb

1. (obsolete, rare)To scrutinize.