'exploration' originates from Latin, specifically the word 'exploratio,' where 'ex-' meant 'out' and 'plorare' meant 'to cry out or weep.'

'exploratio' transformed into the Old French word 'exploration,' and eventually became the modern English word 'exploration' through Middle English.

Initially, it meant 'to cry out or search,' but over time it evolved into its current meaning of 'investigating or traveling through unknown areas.'