Do most Brits still speak this way?

I have just learned a new verb. Here is a sentence written by (presumably) a female British journalist:

"I rooted in my bag for something that could pass as a birthday present for a 6-year-old."

I assume that an American would have written "searched."

Is "rooted" in that sense still widely used in the United Kingdom?


THANK YOU

(Not a Teacher)

I've read that word in several places before, though I can't say for sure if I've ever heard someone say it.

It's common enough in informal English. It has the idea of searching for some time, and is often followed by 'around'.

A better title for the thread would have been 'rooted' = 'searched' in BrE?

It sounds natural to me, though more so with around/about.