think tank

American  

noun

1. a research institute or organization employed to solve complex problems or predict or plan future developments, as in military, political, or social areas.

---

think-tank British  

noun

1. informal a group of specialists organized by a business enterprise, governmental body, etc, and commissioned to undertake intensive study and research into specified problems

---

think tank Cultural  

1. An institution in which scholars pursue research in public policy. Largely funded by endowments and grants, think tanks work to improve public awareness of policy issues (through publications) and to influence the government to act upon issues of national importance. (See power elite.)

---

think tank Idioms  

1. A group or organization dedicated to problem-solving and research, especially in such areas as technology, social or political strategy, and the military. For example, The congressional leaders rely too heavily on that conservative think tank. This term originated about 1900 as a facetious colloquialism for brain and was given its new meaning about 1950.

---

Etymology

Origin of think tank

1900–05 for earlier sense “brain”; 1955–60 for current sense

Example Sentences

“The sectors hit hardest by U.S. and Israeli airstrikes represent the core pillars of employment and production,” Kahalzadeh wrote for the London-based Bourse & Bazaar Foundation think tank.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 16, 2026

A government loan scheme for first-time home buyers in England mostly helped higher earners in areas where homes are cheaper, a major think tank has said.

From BBC • Apr. 14, 2026

The European Centre for International Political Economy, a global think tank, noted that the U.S. led in investment in the quantum private sector in 2024, at 44% of global funding.

From Barron's • Apr. 14, 2026

Since leaving the central bank in 2011, Warsh has, among other things, served as a lecturer at Stanford University’s business school and as a visiting fellow at the university’s Hoover Institution, a conservative think tank.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 14, 2026

As an analyst for the Rand Corporation, a think tank focused on military and international issues, he had been granted permission to conduct research at the Pentagon, home of the United States Department of Defense.

From "Most Dangerous: Daniel Ellsberg and the Secret History of the Vietnam War" by Steve Sheinkin