formulate
Americanverb (used with object)
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formulates,
present (3rd person singular)
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formulated,
past participle, past
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formulating
present participle
verb
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to put into or express in systematic terms; express in or as if in a formula
-
to devise
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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formulationnoun
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formulatornoun
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nonformulationnoun
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preformulationnoun
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preformulateverb (used with object)
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formulableadjective
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unformulatedadjective
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well-formulatedadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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formulatesimple
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formulatessimple
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have formulatedperfect
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has formulatedperfect
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am formulatingprogressive
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are formulatingprogressive
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is formulatingprogressive
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have been formulatingperfect progressive
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has been formulatingperfect progressive
Past
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formulatedsimple
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had formulatedperfect
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was formulatingprogressive
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were formulatingprogressive
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had been formulatingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of formulate
Explanation
To formulate is to come up with a plan. If you are locked out of your house, you'll need to formulate a plan to get back inside — preferably one that doesn't involve kicking in the door. You can also use the verb formulate to mean "put into words." If too many people are showing up at your work in inappropriate clothes, your company may formulate a dress code policy. They may, for example, decree that shoes must be worn at all times. The verb can also mean "to develop a formula for something." If the dog ate the chicken you were going to use in your dinner, you may need to formulate a new recipe for chicken-less pot pie.
Vocabulary lists containing formulate
Tier 2 Words for the SBAC ELA Items
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Jim Burke's Academic Vocabulary List
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Shape Up: Form
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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.
See Examples For:
Ms. Takaichi eventually might even have to formulate an economic plan that doesn’t hinge on “stimulus” spending.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 10, 2026
But the offer enables us to formulate a possible structure: that of an unequal relationship between two human worlds, perhaps even a durable social asymmetry between the Neanderthal and Sapiens groups.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 7, 2026
AFP has a deal with Mistral allowing the company's chatbot to draw on the news agency's articles to formulate responses.
From Barron's ● May 28, 2026
Radcliffe hoped they would formulate a set of bipartisan recommendations to the state legislature.
From Salon ● May 12, 2026
Before Berlin could even try to formulate a response, Marcie left, after waving at someone parking their rough-idling Buick near the picnic tables under the big awning.
From "Legendary Frybread Drive-In" by Cynthia Leitich Smith
Will that be a factor in Vladimir Putin’s calculations as he formulates Russia’s response?
From BBC ● Nov. 18, 2024
The typical comedy equation is tragedy plus time; “Diarra From Detroit” formulates an alternate calculation that joins crisis and unanswered questions.
From Salon ● Apr. 2, 2024
Not the official fundraising and administrative apparatus that runs conventions and formulates policy platforms, but the broad constellation of think tanks, nonprofits, academic experts, and journalists that collectively regulates the liberal intellectual atmosphere.
From Slate ● Mar. 19, 2024
Mr. Schumer is seeking to craft a comprehensive AI bill and has started talking with his House Republican counterparts as he formulates such a legislative package.
From Washington Times ● Oct. 3, 2023
“Who formulates the policies of these two companies?”
From "Native Son" by Richard Wright
That publication has been a proponent for changing, extending or rejecting the legal definition of genocide enshrined in the 1948 Genocide Convention, formulated by Jewish jurist Raphael Lemkin.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 22, 2026
Plans are being formulated for the months ahead and the band's members have different ambitions for the future.
From BBC ● Jul. 11, 2026
Angelica Salas, who heads one of Los Angeles’ most influential immigrant rights groups, met regularly last summer with City Councilmember Hugo Soto-Martínez — himself the son of Mexican immigrants — as they formulated a response.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 4, 2026
There he formulated his concept of sea power, centered the college’s curriculum around it, and earned international acclaim for his writing.
From Barron's ● Jun. 5, 2026
He would have suspected a trick, if he could have formulated such a complicated thought.
From "Artemis Fowl" by Eoin Colfer
The simplest way of formulating that question: Is there any objective sense in which a man can become a woman or vice versa?
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 24, 2026
Paris and Berlin want "to have a Franco-German roadmap on this issue by September", he said, adding that their economy, finance and foreign ministers had been tasked with formulating the plan.
From Barron's ● Jul. 17, 2026
You’re not formulating an answer when you’re watching a movie.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 1, 2026
England have been formulating plans for warm-up matches before their three overseas Test trips next winter and there has been a midnight curfew in place for the white-ball team.
From BBC ● Mar. 20, 2026
Consequently, the Greeks and the Romans were incapable of formulating the idea of laws of nature, and without them they could not develop modern science.
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.
