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:
“This collaboration creates a new bridge between the stories we tell and the creativity they inspire, giving creators a bigger stage to share what they’ve made, and audiences more to discover on Disney+ every day.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 5, 2026
And it reminds us that there are still lands to discover on the odyssey that is quantum research.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 4, 2026
If you do discover an unauthorized charge on your debit card, notifying your bank or credit union within two business days of noticing the fraud caps your maximum liability at $50.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 30, 2026
"I wanted to read about the experience of actually finding fossils, you know, what it was like to actually discover something on the beach," he said.
From BBC ● Jul. 30, 2026
Later in the nineteenth century, scientists will discover that a weak electrical current applied to the exposed brain of a laboratory animal will make certain muscles twitch involuntarily and certain senses sharpen or go dead.
From "Phineas Gage" by John Fleischman
But there is more afoot than a medical breakthrough, as Julia discovers.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 31, 2026
Likewise, viewers will not be startled when Marina eventually discovers painful secrets about her mom and dad that cause her to reconsider those phantom figures.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 1, 2026
If a future astrobiology mission discovers life in Venus' clouds, one possible explanation is that it originally came from Earth.
From Science Daily ● Jun. 26, 2026
Setup: After Woody gets pilfered by a toy dealer, he discovers he’s part of a rare vintage set that includes Jessie and a horse named Bullseye.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 17, 2026
Inside a warped cabinet drawer, miraculously, he discovers a zinc-carbon eleven-volt battery with a black cat printed on the side.
From "All the Light We Cannot See" by Anthony Doerr
After weeks in captivity, she discovered she was pregnant and became very sick.
From BBC ● Aug. 7, 2026
Researchers have discovered an unusually rich fossil site in a remote region of Canada's Northwest Territories, revealing new details about some of the earliest complex animals on Earth.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 6, 2026
Authorities said they discovered a small cache of firearms at his home along with a security ID.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 6, 2026
He spent about 10 years looking for the gene behind the condition and ultimately discovered that people with narcolepsy who experience sudden muscle weakness were missing the chemical orexin.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 6, 2026
For the briefest moment, Clare thought he had been discovered.
From "The Undead Fox of Deadwood Forest" by Aubrey Hartman
This suggests AI may prove to be just as valuable for discovering unexpected mathematical objects as it is for constructing proofs.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 6, 2026
What she is now discovering is that a courtroom does not run on the same rules as a cable television set.
From Salon ● Aug. 4, 2026
Josh said discovering Theo had gastroschisis had been a shock and "incredibly scary".
From BBC ● Aug. 3, 2026
The second event, “Tuned In, Comped Out,” was about discovering music through compilations.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 29, 2026
The thought of Roho or his followers discovering that I took the Msaidizi sends a chill through me.
From "The Manifestor Prophecy" by Angie Thomas
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.
