grope, search, look for
探 centers on reaching out to find something not immediately visible: groping in the dark, searching for information, or looking for a person or object.
探 combines 扌 (hand) with 罙, which is associated with depth or reaching into a hole. The character suggests a hand reaching into a deep space to search or grope.
The hand radical 扌 reaches into the deep, hole-like shape of 罙, like someone groping in the dark to find something.
For タン, imagine searching with a tan-colored flashlight in a dark cave: tan -> タン, and the hand gropes along the walls.
to search for; to look for; to hunt for; to seek
detective; investigator; sleuth
to feel around for; to fumble for; to grope for; to search for; to look for
search; lookup; hunt; (item of) research; exploration; investigation
exploration; expedition
probe; inquiry; enquiry; investigation
detection
search; quest; pursuit
to track down; to locate; to find out; to smoke out; to ferret out; to chase up; to discover
research; investigation; enquiry; inquiry; study
fumbling; groping
searching; hunting for news story; journalist
treasure hunting; treasure hunt
to search for; to seek for; to look for
to search about for; to hunt around for; to look high and low for; to look everywhere for
to find (after searching everywhere); to locate; to discover
searchlight
house hunting
mineral exploration
local commissioner (Kamakura or Muromachi eras)