we located him

USAGE SUMMARY

The phrase "we located him" is correct and usable in written English.
You can use it when referring to the act of finding or discovering the whereabouts of a person. Example: "After hours of searching, we located him in the nearby park."

✓ Grammatically correct

News & Media

Science

Human-verified examples from authoritative sources

Exact Expressions

1 human-written examples

"Our police tried to find him and we located him on the highway this afternoon," said Austrian interior ministry spokesman Alexander Marakovits.

BBC

Human-verified similar examples from authoritative sources

Similar Expressions

59 human-written examples

It's only just now that we have located him here.

The New York Times

"Within five minutes I heard one of them say 'We have located him" and I saw paramedics and the police rush to where he was".

Independent

"We'd still like to get him in, if we could locate him," Bruce said.

The New Yorker

Our foremost priority at this time is to see if we can locate him," Texas A&M spokesman Jason Cook told KBTX in College Station on Wednesday.

Huffington Post

"We were being hunted!" Who was hunting him, and how Officer K located him is unclear.

Vice

Earlier we reported that his friend Richard Branson was using Google Earth to try to located him.

TechCrunch

When members of his regiment finally located him, he was still weeping.

Evolution: Education and Outreach

"The client lived in Florida and he moved, and we could not locate him".

The New Yorker

On Friday, the day of the wedding, we got a crew together to try to locate him so we could start the ceremony.

Vice

We located a copy and quoted him a price.

The Guardian - Books

Expert writing Tips

Best practice

Use "we located him" when you want to convey a sense of discovery or finding someone after a search. It's suitable for news reports, narratives, and formal contexts.

Common error

While "locate" is a perfectly valid word, avoid using "we located him" in very casual conversations where a simpler term like "we found him" would sound more natural.

Linguistic Context

The phrase "we located him" functions as a statement indicating the successful finding of an individual. Ludwig AI identifies this usage in various news and media contexts, confirming its grammatical acceptability.

Expression frequency: Rare

Frequent in

News & Media

67%

Science

17%

Formal & Business

0%

Less common in

Encyclopedias

0%

Wiki

0%

Reference

0%

Ludwig's WRAP-UP

In summary, the phrase "we located him" is a grammatically correct way to express that someone was found, often after a search. According to Ludwig AI, it is most commonly used in News & Media contexts, suggesting a neutral register. While acceptable, it's relatively rare, and simpler alternatives like "we found him" may be more appropriate for informal settings.

More alternative expressions

Phrases that express similar concepts, ordered by semantic similarity:

we found him

Direct synonym, replacing "located" with "found" for simplicity.

we tracked him down

Emphasizes the effort involved in finding him.

we discovered his location

More formal and emphasizes the discovery of a place.

we ascertained his whereabouts

Highly formal and emphasizes certainty about his location.

we pinpointed his position

Suggests a precise determination of his location, perhaps using technology.

we came across him

Suggests a more accidental discovery.

we identified his place

Emphasizes recognition, perhaps from a photo or description.

we learned where he was

General statement, focuses on acquiring the information of his location.

we determined his location

Emphasizes a process of figuring out where he was.

we established his presence

Focuses on confirming that he was at a specific place.

FAQs

What can I say instead of "we located him"?

You can use alternatives like "we found him", "we tracked him down", or "we discovered his location" depending on the context.

Is "we located him" formal or informal?

The phrase "we located him" is generally considered neutral to slightly formal. Simpler alternatives like "we found him" might be more appropriate for very informal settings.

How to use "we located him" in a sentence?

You can use "we located him" in sentences like, "After an extensive search, we located him in the city center", or "Our team worked diligently, and we located him within 24 hours".

What's the difference between "we located him" and "we found him"?

While both phrases convey the idea of finding someone, "we located him" often suggests a more deliberate or systematic search, whereas "we found him" can imply a more accidental discovery.