brainstorm

American  

[breyn-stawrm] / ˈbreɪnˌstɔrm /

noun

brainstorms plural

1. 1. a sudden impulse, idea, etc..

      Her most recent brainstorm of teaching her dog to surf wasn’t met with much enthusiasm from the dog.

   2. Chiefly British Informal. a fit of mental confusion or excitement.

2. a session of brainstorming.

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adjective

1. of or relating to brainstorming.

verb (used without object)

1. to conduct or practice brainstorming, a technique for generating ideas and solving specific problems with uncensored and nonlinear thinking, usually performed through group participation in a spontaneous discussion where all ideas are noted without assigning them value, and no proposal is selected or discarded until after the conclusion of the creative exercise.

verb (used with object)

1. to generate (ideas, solutions, questions, etc.) through brainstorming.

brainstorm British  

/ ˈbreɪnˌstɔːm /

noun

1. a severe outburst of excitement, often as the result of a transitory disturbance of cerebral activity

2. informal a sudden mental aberration

3. informal another word for brainwave

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• brainstormer
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• brainstorms
  plural

Etymology

Origin of brainstorm

First recorded in 1890–95; brain + storm; originally a manifestation of a serious psychiatric disorder

Explanation

As you would expect, the word brainstorm involves thought. A brainstorm can be an "Aha!" moment, while brainstorming is the process of trying to think of ideas. If you've ever needed to find a topic for a paper and have just started listing every idea coming to you, you know what it's like to brainstorm. People brainstorm when they need a new idea. You can also say you had a brainstorm when a good idea or solution occurs to you. Often, this kind of brainstorm happens when you're not even working on the problem. For example, a scientist might have a brainstorm for a new project in the shower.

Example Sentences

I find it helpful to brainstorm a week’s worth of meal ideas that call for rotisserie chicken in preparation for bringing a whole bird home.

From Salon • Jun. 29, 2026

Lilypad’s creativity-zapping existence throws off Pixar’s ability to brainstorm a dynamic story.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 18, 2026

I reach a point of no return by late afternoon, when I stop to relax over dinner, then write or brainstorm for a couple more hours.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 14, 2026

It can serve as a place to brainstorm or even draft an early version of a press release “as long as there is a significant, significant editing process,” he says.

From Barron's • Apr. 14, 2026

Tamika was coming over later and we were going to brainstorm possible experiments for our YouTube channel, Science Rocks, hosted by the two greatest scientists in the universe, after Einstein, of course.

From "Sir Fig Newton and the Science of Persistence" by Sonja Thomas

Related Words

• deliberate