devise
Americanverb (used with object)
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devises,
present (3rd person singular)
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devised,
past participle, past
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devising
present participle
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to contrive, plan, or elaborate; invent from existing principles or ideas.
to devise a method.
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Theater. to develop (a play) collaboratively with the performers.
Based on the lives of women in engineering, the students devised the play themselves.
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Law. to assign or transmit (property) by will.
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Archaic. to imagine; suppose.
verb (used without object)
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devises,
present (3rd person singular)
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devised,
past participle, past
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devising
present participle
noun
verb
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to work out, contrive, or plan (something) in one's mind
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(tr) law to dispose of (property, esp real property) by will
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obsolete (tr) to imagine or guess
noun
Synonym Usage
See prepare.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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devisesimple
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devisessimple
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have devisedperfect
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has devisedperfect
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am devisingprogressive
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are devisingprogressive
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is devisingprogressive
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have been devisingperfect progressive
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has been devisingperfect progressive
Past
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devisedsimple
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had devisedperfect
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was devisingprogressive
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were devisingprogressive
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had been devisingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of devise
First recorded in 1150–1200; (verb) Middle English devisen “to inspect, design, compose,” from Old French deviser, from unattested Vulgar Latin dēvīsāre, for unattested dīvīsāre, frequentative of Latin dīvidere “to divide” ( see divide); (noun) see device
Explanation
To devise is to figure out a plan. Men twirling long mustaches might devise a plan to tie someone to the railroad tracks. To devise a plan is more than just making one; there's a lot of figuring out to do, such as: "Phoebe devised a bus route that picked up kids in alphabetical order." There's a method to the madness of devising. The chemistry class devised a plan to make the fire alarm go off. Devise can be positive, too, meaning to find a creative solution: "The design team devised a plan to make the trailer home look like a medieval castle."
Vocabulary lists containing devise
Jim Burke's Academic Vocabulary List
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Walk Two Moons
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The Things They Carried
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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:
Rantzen also found time to devise a new talent series, The Big Time, which launched the career of singer Sheena Easton.
From BBC ● Sep. 30, 2026
A former Trump administration official told ProPublica the group’s purpose was to strengthen the United States’ strategic position in Greenland and devise policies to bring the two closer.
From Salon ● Sep. 16, 2026
We queried experts across sports medicine, personal training and physical therapy to devise easy routines comprising simple exercises you can do at home to test and train your balance.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 18, 2026
February 28: An FAA audit gives Boeing 90 days to devise a plan to significantly upgrade its quality control processes.
From Barron's ● Aug. 3, 2026
“Thank you, sir, but Mr. Curran and I will devise a sufficient punishment.”
From "Orphan Train" by Christina Baker Kline
He even devises a way to keep the goats corralled so that he doesn’t have to chase them down or use up his precious bullets and gunpowder.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 23, 2026
Rose Njeri was detained on Friday after police raided her home in the capital, Nairobi, and seized electronic devises, activists said.
From BBC ● Jun. 2, 2025
Afterward, just before mandatory lights out, Gi-hun devises a plan.
From Salon ● Dec. 27, 2024
He said he has no problem sharing the carries with the Jets in whatever role coordinator Nathaniel Hackett devises for him in his offense.
From Seattle Times ● Aug. 29, 2023
Down on the ground, he devises spectacles for the duke.
From "The Mona Lisa Vanishes" by Nicholas Day
Rantzen also devised and presented Hearts of Gold, a programme that celebrated previously unknown people who had been responsible for good deeds.
From BBC ● Sep. 30, 2026
Costume designer Colleen Atwood devised the ensemble, while Ed Cubberly created the famous fiberglass muzzle, deliberately leaving it uncoated to evoke the look of dried, taut skin.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 25, 2026
For Vitamin B-2, which aids cellular metabolism, he devised a synthesis that improved on European methods while avoiding their patents, cutting the price by more than 99%.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 18, 2026
Except the library had devised a vastly superior arrangement: There was nothing I had to purchase in order to qualify.
From Salon ● Sep. 6, 2026
Arabic astronomy was highly sophisticated, and at least the equal of any Western astronomy until Copernicus—indeed, Copernicus may well have used technical solutions devised by Arab astronomers.
From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton
After polling officials in 90 Florida cities and counties, researchers said the officials were already devising backup plans to put in effect if the amendment passes.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 8, 2026
Boeing said it was working with airlines on a procedure to allow pilots to re-enable the automated navigation feature if needed, and devising a software fix.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 28, 2026
These credentials are meant to help workers prove they have skills like devising effective prompts or using AI for business strategy.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 31, 2026
Inspired by the sensibility of a tantalizingly idiosyncratic writer-performer, the play offered Greenspan the opportunity to star in a Greenspan-esque work not of his own devising.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 8, 2026
They warmed the blood and the honey in the kettle called Odrerir, and did other things to it of their own devising.
From "Norse Mythology" by Neil Gaiman
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.
