discover
Americanverb (used with object)
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discovers,
present (3rd person singular)
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discovered,
past participle, past
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discovering
present participle
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to see, get knowledge of, learn of, find, or find out; gain sight or knowledge of (something previously unseen or unknown).
to discover America;
to discover electricity.
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to notice or realize.
I discovered I didn't have my credit card with me when I went to pay my bill.
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Archaic. to make known; reveal; disclose.
verb
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to be the first to find or find out about
Fleming discovered penicillin
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to learn about or encounter for the first time; realize
she discovered the pleasures of wine
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to find after study or search
I discovered a leak in the tank
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to reveal or make known
Usage
What are other ways to say discover? To discover something is to see, get knowledge of, or find it. How does discover differ from learn, ascertain, and detect? Find out on Thesaurus.com.
Synonym Usage
Discover, invent, originate suggest bringing to light something previously unknown. To discover may be to find something that had previously existed but had hitherto been unknown: to discover a new electricity; it may also refer to devising a new use for something already known: to discover how to make synthetic rubber. To invent is to make or create something new, especially something ingeniously devised to perform mechanical operations: to invent a device for detecting radioactivity. To originate is to begin something new, especially new ideas, methods, etc.: to originate a political movement, the use of assembly-line techniques.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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discoverernoun
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prediscoververb (used with object)
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rediscoververb (used with object)
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discoverableadjective
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nondiscoverableadjective
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undiscoverableadjective
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undiscoveredadjective
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discoverablyadverb
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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discoversimple
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discoverssimple
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have discoveredperfect
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has discoveredperfect
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am discoveringprogressive
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are discoveringprogressive
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is discoveringprogressive
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have been discoveringperfect progressive
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has been discoveringperfect progressive
Past
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discoveredsimple
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had discoveredperfect
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was discoveringprogressive
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were discoveringprogressive
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had been discoveringperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of discover
First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English discouere(n), descuvere(n), from Anglo-French discoverir, descovrir, from Old French descovrir, descuvrir, from Late Latin discooperīre “to disclose, expose”; see origin at dis- 1, cover
Explanation
If you discover something, you find it unexpectedly, like when you discover your favorite childhood stuffed animal in a box of old junk. When you discover something, it can be by surprise or the result of a search. You might discover the fact that your dad used to travel with the circus as a trapeze artist or discover a band none of your friends ever heard of. Scientists often discover new substances, stars, or organisms. The Latin root discooperire, "uncover," combines the prefix dis-, or "opposite of," with cooperire, "to cover up."
Vocabulary lists containing discover
Jim Burke's Academic Vocabulary List
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Beowulf vocabulary
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"Return to Titanic" and "Talking with Robert Ballard"
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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:
That added sensitivity could help astronomers discover more planets during their earliest stages of formation and close one of the biggest observational gaps in exoplanet science.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 17, 2026
Novo said Wednesday it would use Anthropic’s Claude Science platform to discover and produce medicines more quickly.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 16, 2026
In the 1949 classic, a small group of Londoners discover treasure and declare independence making them exempt from post-war rationing and other bureaucratic restrictions.
From Barron's ● Sep. 16, 2026
BBC Sport visits Como to discover the vision and philosophy of the club's coach, Cesc Fabregas, who has overseen the team's remarkable rise to the Champions League.
From BBC ● Sep. 8, 2026
And there was only one way I’d discover anything about Will and his parents.
From "Code Name Kingfisher" by Liz Kessler
Randy Marsh, meanwhile, discovers the same opportunity from the opposite direction.
From Salon ● Sep. 18, 2026
In the wine-cellar scene where Devlin discovers uranium—a substance used to build an atomic bomb—in a bottle, Hitchcock relies entirely on Latin dance tunes playing upstairs rather than a suspense cue.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 4, 2026
Marina, whose grandmother warned her away from returning to their home in Haifa, finally visits and discovers that the house both seems to know her and is making her very ill.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 2, 2026
Plus, Gen Z discovers the premium awards credit card, and Costco will soon sell Medicare plans.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 18, 2026
Deserted by him and nearly everybody else, bed-bound in a garret, she discovers in herself a sense of humor.
From "Atonement" by Ian McEwan
Less fortunate were Lehmann, who died of his burns in the hospital, and Dolan, in whose pocket was discovered a poignant goodbye letter written to his wife in case of disaster.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 18, 2026
During the past two decades, however, researchers have discovered that apoptotic caspases are not limited to killing cells.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 18, 2026
"It's clear we need to urgently understand why this issue was not discovered and fixed before it caused chaos," she said, adding that a Civil Aviation Authority review was underway.
From BBC ● Sep. 18, 2026
Meet the first new cat species discovered in 100 years.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 18, 2026
I jumped to my feet and discovered that I’d grown these past many months—I was almost her same height.
From "The Detective's Assistant" by Kate Hannigan
When you find one that is gracious enough to host you, it can feel like discovering a rare gem in a mine of homebodies and those siloed to their own friend groups or families.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 11, 2026
Retirees seem to find them an adventurous way to spend newfound free time discovering fresh perspectives.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 6, 2026
The process of discovering exactly how old it is may take some time, but flint tools, excavated with the fossil, suggest it could have been buried in Islandmagee as many as 3,000 years ago.
From BBC ● Sep. 4, 2026
For enterprise leaders, the cybersecurity challenge used to be discovering software vulnerabilities before attackers could exploit them.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 2, 2026
His delight in discovering dirt the spring he was two.
From "Among the Hidden" by Margaret Peterson Haddix
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.
