Source : Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)

Inquisition \In`qui*si"tion\, v. t.
   To make inquisistion concerning; to inquire into. [Obs.]
   --Milton.

Inquisition \In`qui*si"tion\, n. [L. inquisitio : cf. F.
   inquisition. See {Inquire}, and cf. {Inquest}.]
   1. The act of inquiring; inquiry; search; examination;
      inspection; investigation.

            As I could learn through earnest inquisition.
                                                  --Latimer.

            Let not search and inquisition quail To bring again
            these foolish runaways.               --Shak.

   2. (Law)
      (a) Judicial inquiry; official examination; inquest.
      (b) The finding of a jury, especially such a finding under
          a writ of inquiry. --Bouvier.

                The justices in eyre had it formerly in charge
                to make inquisition concerning them by a jury of
                the county.                       --Blackstone.

   3. (R. C. Ch.) A court or tribunal for the examination and
      punishment of heretics, fully established by Pope Gregory
      IX. in 1235. Its operations were chiefly confined to
      Spain, Portugal, and their dependencies, and a part of
      Italy.

Source : WordNet®

Inquisition
     n 1: a former tribunal of the Roman Catholic Church (1232-1820)
          created to discover and suppress heresy
     2: a severe interrogation (often violating the rights or
        privacy of individuals)