calculated
Americanadjective
-
arrived at or determined by mathematical calculation; ascertained mathematically.
-
carefully thought out or planned.
a calculated effort.
adjective
-
undertaken after considering the likelihood of success or failure
a calculated risk
-
deliberately planned; premeditated
a calculated insult
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of calculated
Explanation
If you do something in a calculated way, you've given it quite a bit of thought beforehand, and you're very deliberate in the way you do it. Sometimes calculated can have a positive meaning, like when you plan ahead and are thoughtful about something. A good electrician takes a calculated approach to wiring a new house. On the other hand, a "calculated remark" could be one that's hurtful or manipulative and was made deliberately by the speaker to get a particular reaction or result.
Vocabulary lists containing calculated
"The Crucible" -- Vocabulary from all 4 Acts
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"The Crucible" -- Vocabulary from Act 1
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The Mark of Athena
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Next, they calculated what happened after small disturbances were introduced.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 19, 2026
As of June, Lumen had put down approximately 19 million “fiber miles,” which is calculated by multiplying the length of the route by the number of fibers inside each cable.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 19, 2026
US journalist Austin Tice, who disappeared in Syria in 2012, was kidnapped in a calculated operation which was more than a month in the planning, the BBC can reveal.
From BBC ● Sep. 17, 2026
It is meaningfully higher, for instance, than it was in early 2022, just before the Federal Reserve began raising rates postpandemic, according to an estimate calculated by the San Francisco Fed.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 15, 2026
In fact, Rømer never calculated a figure for the speed of light.
From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
