invent
verb (used with object)
to originate or create as a product of one's own ingenuity, experimentation, or contrivance.
had invented
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past perfectof invent.past perfect
Used to express a completed action that took place before another specific past action occurred.
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 prosecution said Digwa had invented a "wicked lie" to try to save himself from jail – and the jury agreed.
From BBC ● May 29, 2026
When he saw a poster for his first movie, 1982’s “The Shaolin Temple,” he discovered that producers had invented a stage moniker for him.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 4, 2026
Zac, a “swaggering tormented fabulist,” had invented a back story in a city where money talks and no one speaks about its provenance.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 10, 2026
His law firm had invented “Mass Torts Made Perfect” and ran it as a conference for elite plaintiffs’ attorneys nationwide to rub elbows and strategize, making him the unofficial president of the polo club posse.
From Slate ● Jan. 13, 2026
If the Japanese had invented football, this is how they would have played it.
From "Friday Night Lights: A Town, A Team, And A Dream" by H.G. Bissinger
