formulate
Americanverb (used with object)
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formulates,
present (3rd person singular)
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formulated,
past participle, past
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formulating
present participle
verb
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to put into or express in systematic terms; express in or as if in a formula
-
to devise
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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formulationnoun
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formulatornoun
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nonformulationnoun
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preformulationnoun
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preformulateverb (used with object)
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formulableadjective
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unformulatedadjective
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well-formulatedadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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formulatesimple
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formulatessimple
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have formulatedperfect
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has formulatedperfect
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am formulatingprogressive
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are formulatingprogressive
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is formulatingprogressive
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have been formulatingperfect progressive
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has been formulatingperfect progressive
Past
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formulatedsimple
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had formulatedperfect
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was formulatingprogressive
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were formulatingprogressive
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had been formulatingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of formulate
Explanation
To formulate is to come up with a plan. If you are locked out of your house, you'll need to formulate a plan to get back inside — preferably one that doesn't involve kicking in the door. You can also use the verb formulate to mean "put into words." If too many people are showing up at your work in inappropriate clothes, your company may formulate a dress code policy. They may, for example, decree that shoes must be worn at all times. The verb can also mean "to develop a formula for something." If the dog ate the chicken you were going to use in your dinner, you may need to formulate a new recipe for chicken-less pot pie.
Vocabulary lists containing formulate
Tier 2 Words for the SBAC ELA Items
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Jim Burke's Academic Vocabulary List
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Shape Up: Form
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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:
Blackstone worked with Morrison to formulate a plan for Jersey Mike’s to offer its first hot Italian sub, which has been a hit.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 29, 2026
But the offer enables us to formulate a possible structure: that of an unequal relationship between two human worlds, perhaps even a durable social asymmetry between the Neanderthal and Sapiens groups.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 7, 2026
The new Zhenwu M890 chip "provides a reliable option that is insulated from fluctuations in export controls, enabling domestic AI companies to formulate long-term technology roadmaps," said eetrend.com's Zhang.
From Barron's ● May 20, 2026
Radcliffe hoped they would formulate a set of bipartisan recommendations to the state legislature.
From Salon ● May 12, 2026
Leonard began to formulate a strategy fueled entirely by greed.
From "City Spies" by James Ponti
The DH is, therefore, "unable to move forward on this matter whilst the UK Government formulates its position in response to the recommendations".
From BBC ● Mar. 9, 2026
The typical comedy equation is tragedy plus time; “Diarra From Detroit” formulates an alternate calculation that joins crisis and unanswered questions.
From Salon ● Apr. 2, 2024
Not the official fundraising and administrative apparatus that runs conventions and formulates policy platforms, but the broad constellation of think tanks, nonprofits, academic experts, and journalists that collectively regulates the liberal intellectual atmosphere.
From Slate ● Mar. 19, 2024
Mr. Schumer is seeking to craft a comprehensive AI bill and has started talking with his House Republican counterparts as he formulates such a legislative package.
From Washington Times ● Oct. 3, 2023
She sits on her branch some fifteen feet above him, swinging her leg and looking off over the field while she formulates the dare.
From "The Night Circus" by Erin Morgenstern
"She formulated a philosophy of art she dubbed 'self-obliteration' based on simple motifs of obsessive repetition and proliferation," according to her website.
From Barron's ● Aug. 27, 2026
Aschenbrenner formulated the worldview behind his paper, called “Situational Awareness: The Decade Ahead,” while he was still at OpenAI.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 26, 2026
The team investigated a version of gravity known as Einstein-Cartan theory, formulated in 7 dimensions on a mathematical structure called a G2-manifold with torsion.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 5, 2026
“The officers formulated a plan and safely took the suspects into custody.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 12, 2026
I doubt this, because Copernicus seems to have assumed that the correct theory must already have been formulated: he needed to read until he found it.
From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton
Conagra’s team is already formulating products for 2028, keeping a close eye on new anti-obesity drugs currently winding their way through the patent pipeline.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 19, 2026
Paris and Berlin want "to have a Franco-German roadmap on this issue by September", he said, adding that their economy, finance and foreign ministers had been tasked with formulating the plan.
From Barron's ● Jul. 17, 2026
You’re not formulating an answer when you’re watching a movie.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 1, 2026
In his speech, Streeting said Labour had suffered from an "overcautiousness" when formulating policies in opposition.
From BBC ● May 17, 2026
He raised the conch for a moment "Very well then. I suppose what's what is whether there are ghosts or not-" He thought for a moment, formulating the question.
From "Lord of the Flies" by William Golding
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.
