calculate
Americanverb (used with object)
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calculates,
present (3rd person singular)
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calculated,
past participle, past
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calculating
present participle
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to determine or ascertain by mathematical methods; compute.
to calculate the velocity of light.
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to determine by reasoning, common sense, or practical experience; estimate; evaluate; gauge.
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to make suitable or fit for a purpose; adapt (usually used passively and with an infinitive).
His remarks were calculated to inspire our confidence.
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Chiefly Northern U.S.
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to think; guess.
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to intend; plan.
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verb (used without object)
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calculates,
present (3rd person singular)
-
calculated,
past participle, past
-
calculating
present participle
-
to make a computation or form an estimate.
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to count or rely (usually followed by on orupon ).
They calculated on good weather.
verb
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to solve (one or more problems) by a mathematical procedure; compute
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(tr; may take a clause as object) to determine beforehand by judgment, reasoning, etc; estimate
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(tr; usually passive) to design specifically; aim
the car was calculated to appeal to women
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(intr; foll by on or upon) to depend; rely
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dialect (tr; may take a clause as object)
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to suppose; think
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to intend (to do something)
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Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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calculatesimple
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calculatessimple
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have calculatedperfect
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has calculatedperfect
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am calculatingprogressive
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are calculatingprogressive
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is calculatingprogressive
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have been calculatingperfect progressive
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has been calculatingperfect progressive
Past
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calculatedsimple
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had calculatedperfect
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was calculatingprogressive
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were calculatingprogressive
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had been calculatingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of calculate
First recorded in 1560–70; from Late Latin calculātus “reckoned,” past participle of calculāre “to reckon,” derivative of calculus “pebble”; see calculus
Explanation
To calculate is to compute, by figuring out a mathematical equation or a situation. You can calculate your monthly student loan payments, or calculate the risk of not paying them on time. Calculate derives from the Latin word for "count." When you calculate, you either count something up or calculate on something happening. You might be able to calculate the answer to a simple equation in your head but need a calculator to figure out a more complex problem. And when someone is calculating, they are scheming or conniving, always figuring out the fastest way to get ahead.
Vocabulary lists containing calculate
Jim Burke's Academic Vocabulary List
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Pi Day Vocabulary
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"The Gift of the Magi" by O. Henry
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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:
China doesn’t publish the size of its strategic oil reserves or reveal its oil consumption, forcing analysts to calculate “apparent demand” by adding up official refinery throughput and net imports of refined oil products.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 29, 2026
You might quibble with how we calculate the time value of money — i.e., what is the value today of a dollar paid in 1984, and so on — but overall, the figures are correct.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 27, 2026
In a class-action lawsuit brought on behalf of California renters, lawyers alleged that Conservice’s policy was to deny tenants the right to view specific bills or formulas used to calculate their individual charges.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 26, 2026
Fundamental particles such as electrons are instead described by a "wavefunction," a mathematical representation that researchers can use to calculate the probabilities of properties such as position and momentum.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 24, 2026
She’s got to be in one of these spots! he thought, beginning to calculate the high tide for the night.
From "Tiger Boy" by Mitali Perkins
SpaceX calculates the probability that its satellites may draw near spacecraft or other objects.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 30, 2026
The most expensive purchase, she calculates, were the windows at £30,000, while one of the cheapest measures was making the whole house airtight, which cost £5,000.
From BBC ● Aug. 21, 2026
In his weekly Flow Show strategy note published Friday, Hartnett calculates that the cost of servicing the interest on that debt has reached $1.5 trillion yearly.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 14, 2026
The bank calculates that households are sitting on $68 billion to $167 billion of potential equity investment capacity through the first quarter of next year.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 22, 2026
Sometimes I think Garrett calculates the exact most awkward way to position his body in any given moment, and then he just goes for it.
From "Leah on the Offbeat" by Becky Albertalli
Now, as AI agents become more widely adopted, it remains a matter of debate whether the technology’s ROI can be clearly calculated.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 28, 2026
They followed the halos hosting the black holes, estimated how frequently the objects would merge, and calculated the gravitational wave background those mergers would produce.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 27, 2026
The P/E ratios compare with weighted valuations of 19.9 for the S&P 500 and 16 for the S&P MidCap 400, as calculated by FactSet.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 26, 2026
A review is being launched into the way business rates are calculated for pubs and hotels in England and Wales, and could lead to a reform of the system.
From BBC ● Aug. 23, 2026
Jefferson’s posture throughout the drawn-out counting of the electoral votes remained a combination of studied indifference and calculated obliviousness.
From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis
You can test how “nicely” a function moves everything around in space by calculating something called the Jacobian determinant.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 6, 2026
The state director of finance is responsible for calculating the adjusted minimum wage on or before Aug. 1 each year.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 1, 2026
Consider the above chart, which plots three different ways of calculating the CPI:
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 1, 2026
In an unusually detailed sentencing statement, judge O'Grady noted that calculating punishment parts is "with good reason" much misunderstood by victims and members of the public.
From BBC ● Jul. 27, 2026
Over the next two hours we submerge ourselves in finding the sums of infinite geometric series, calculating iterate functions, and expanding powers of binomials.
From "The Running Dream" by Wendelin Van Draanen
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.
