verb
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to find the explanation for or solution to (a mystery, problem, etc)
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maths
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to work out the answer to (a problem)
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to obtain the roots of (an equation)
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Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of solve
First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English solven, from Latin solvere “to loosen, free, release”
Explanation
To solve something is to find a solution, like figuring out the answer to a complex riddle. The verb solve is often used in mathematics, and it means to answer a math problem. You can solve other, non-mathematical problems too — like the question of what to wear when you've run out of clean clothes (your sibling's clothes!). The word solve originally came from the Latin solvere, which meant "to loosen or untie." If you think of any kind of complex problem as a knot, then the original definition of solve still makes sense!
Vocabulary lists containing solve
Jim Burke's Academic Vocabulary List
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TEKS ELAR Academic Vocabulary List (5th-7th grades)
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"Kids Are Inventors, Too"
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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.
Panko told the advisers to instead look at this as “directionality” to be considered: Solve first for the known factors and don’t try to get specific with the future unknowns.
From MarketWatch • May 15, 2026
‘You Are the Detective’ and ‘Can You Solve the Murder?’ take a nostalgic page out of a once-popular format for young readers.
From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 14, 2025
What do you enjoy about Solve This With Us versus the whodunit approach to the mystery series?
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 6, 2024
And Kathy & Stella Solve a Murder is not the only British musical having a moment in the spotlight.
From BBC • Jun. 4, 2024
Solve for X. I couldn’t believe Mr. Greene was serious.
From "Slam!" by Walter Dean Myers
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.
