derive

American  

[dih-rahyv] / dɪˈraɪv /

verb (used with object)

• derives,
  present (3rd person singular)
• derived,
  past participle,  past
• deriving
  present participle

1. to receive or obtain from a source or origin (usually followed byfrom ).

   Synonyms:

   net, reap, gather, glean, attain, gain

2. to trace from a source or origin.

   English words derived from German.

3. to reach or obtain by reasoning; deduce; infer.

4. Chemistry. to produce or obtain (a substance) from another.

5. Grammar. to create (a new linguistic form) by adding affixes to or changing the shape of a root or base.

   The word “runner” is derived from “run.”

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verb (used without object)

• derives,
  present (3rd person singular)
• derived,
  past participle,  past
• deriving
  present participle

1. to come from a source or origin; originate (often followed byfrom ).

derive British  

/ dɪˈraɪv /

verb

1. (usually foll by from) to draw or be drawn (from) in source or origin; trace or be traced

2. (tr) to obtain by reasoning; deduce; infer

3. (tr) to trace the source or development of

4. (usually foll by from) to produce or be produced (from) by a chemical reaction

5. maths to obtain (a function) by differentiation

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• deriver
  noun
• prederive
  verb (used with object)
• derivable
  adjective
• nonderivable
  adjective
• underivable
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Participles

• deriving
  present
• derived
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• derive
  simple
• derives
  simple
• have derived
  perfect
• has derived
  perfect
• am deriving
  progressive
• are deriving
  progressive
• is deriving
  progressive
• have been deriving
  perfect progressive
• has been deriving
  perfect progressive

Past

• derived
  simple
• had derived
  perfect
• was deriving
  progressive
• were deriving
  progressive
• had been deriving
  perfect progressive

Future

• will derive
  simple
• will have derived
  perfect
• will be deriving
  progressive
• will have been deriving
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of derive

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English diriven, deriven “to flow, draw from, spring,” from Anglo-French, Old French deriver, from Latin dērīvāre “to lead off,” equivalent to dē- de- + rīv(us) “a stream” + -āre infinitive suffix

Explanation

If you want to talk about something that comes from something else, but you want to sound sophisticated and maybe financial or scientific, use derive, like so: That scent? It's derived from a solution of roses boiled with toothpicks. The word derive derives from (see how we did that?) the Latin rivus or stream, as in water. That image of the stream may help you remember the meaning of derive; you may picture tracing tiny streams back to their main source. Derive is a verb, as you can see, but it's often in the news in the noun form derivative: something that is derived from something else, as in "juice is a derivative of an orange."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

derive derives derived deriving

High-multiple growth stocks often derive much of their valuation from cash flows expected far in the future, rather than earnings today, and elevated interest rates discount future cash flows more steeply.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 2, 2026

A T. Rowe Price fund manager thinks the hyperscalers can comfortably fund their investment spending, and moreover, derive high returns on that invested capital with a short payback schedule.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 12, 2026

Warsh has spoken at length about not trying to guide traders so as to derive a better signal about the economy from financial markets.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 3, 2026

Some derive from history, as when he relates the lengthy process by which Charles Darwin decided whether or not to propose marriage to Emma Wedgwood.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 29, 2026

He withdrew a piece of paper, unfolded it, and read, "What is the meaning of the word calligraphy and from what language does it derive?"

From "The View From Saturday" by E.L. Konigsburg

“I genuinely see Iran’s relationship with the axis as one of interdependence. It derives some of its strength, information and access to global markets through these different groups,” Salisbury said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 18, 2026

But Steven derives a measure of comfort from the fact that the couple’s two young children are far more attached to him than to the barely present Lucy.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026

"The Fifa World Cup is the pinnacle of global football and derives its strength from the participation of all Confederations and the world's leading football nations," it said.

From BBC ● Jul. 31, 2026

Reuters, which like Politico derives much of its revenue from business-to-business offerings, said it is also weighing whether to block Google’s bot for its consumer-facing news product as traffic declines.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 22, 2026

But their real power derives from the fact that the reviews are the reports of volunteers — of diners who want to share their opinions with others.

From "The Tipping Point" by Malcolm Gladwell

Their figure is derived from mortgage applications submitted to the enterprise, which packages and resells the loans on the secondary market.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 10, 2026

The fifth episode’s title, “Riches of Embarrassment,” is derived from a halftime rallying speech Ted delivers to soften the sting of Alice calling their first-half performance embarrassing.

From Salon ● Sep. 10, 2026

It was derived from the people who waded across Texas’ Rio Grande into the U.S., but it was sometimes used interchangeably with any Latino workers.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 9, 2026

However, in a later post on X, OpenAI said "while unlikely, we cannot rule out that de-identified data derived from their usage of our products helped improve our models."

From Barron's ● Sep. 8, 2026

The Asparagus is not, technically, an asparagus spear, nor is it derived from asparagus parts.

From "Paper Towns" by John Green

The sticky part is deciding how the benefits deriving from pathogens are defined and then shared, how the system is governed, and how equity is guaranteed.

From Barron's ● Jun. 15, 2026

A year ago, 13% of S&P 500 index constituents noted benefits deriving from AI adoption.

From MarketWatch ● Apr. 27, 2026

Meece said the city’s various appeals were aimed at deriving accurate maps.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 19, 2025

The imagery which depicted gods, goddesses, supreme preachers and enlightened souls of three ancient religions - Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism - was reimagined from symbolic to more recognisably deriving from human form.

From BBC ● Jun. 20, 2025

Perhaps it is a tribute to the origin of the word “circus,” deriving from the Greek kirkos meaning circle, or ring.

From "The Night Circus" by Erin Morgenstern

Related Words

• acquire
• assume
• collect
• determine
• develop
• evolve
• extract
• glean
• infer
• obtain
• receive