discover
Americanverb (used with object)
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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.
Related Words
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
- discoverable adjective
- discoverably adverb
- discoverer noun
- nondiscoverable adjective
- prediscover verb (used with object)
- rediscover verb (used with object)
- undiscoverable adjective
- undiscovered adjective
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”; dis- 1, cover
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.
People living on a street at severe risk of flooding are set to discover whether plans to buy and demolish their homes will go ahead.
From BBC
What it says about America: America was a sentimental people at the turn of the 20th century, and women—the keepers of that romantic flame—were beginning to discover their power.
Burris, who has been called the “Godfather of Police Litigation,” was involved in the “Oakland Riders” case in 2000, when officers were discovered to have planted evidence.
From Los Angeles Times
A few months later, a dead lamb was discovered near a service road.
From Los Angeles Times
As AI reshapes how consumers discover products, competition among platforms is shifting away from scale alone toward algorithmic effectiveness.
From Barron's
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.
