devise
verb (used with object)
to contrive, plan, or elaborate; invent from existing principles or ideas.
had been devising
-
past perfect progressiveof devise.past perfect progressive
Used to describe an action that was ongoing continuously in the past up until another past event interrupted it.
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.
The private sector was hit less hard because many of the city's corporations had been devising emergency plans for weeks.
From Time Magazine Archive
We had been devising a strategy to somehow save this thing, but after this report, it's all over.
From Time Magazine Archive
Mother had been devising a series of job aptitude tests, and the desk by her bed was piled with pamphlets and magazines on psychology.
From "Cheaper by the Dozen" by Frank B. Gilbreth Jr. and Ernestine Gilbreth Carey
He was not merely a professing friend, but he wished to show his friendship by deeds as well as words, and he had been devising the best means of showing his friendship.
From Memoirs of Henry Hunt, Esq. — Volume 3 by Henry Hunt
Yesterday afternoon I told her about some plans I had been devising while absent in Bermuda, to lighten her burdens.
From What Is Man? and Other Essays by Mark Twain
