invent
Americanverb (used with object)
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to originate or create as a product of one's own ingenuity, experimentation, or contrivance.
to invent the telegraph.
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to produce or create with the imagination.
to invent a story.
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to make up or fabricate (something fictitious or false).
to invent excuses.
- Synonyms:
- concoct
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Archaic. to come upon; find.
verb
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to create or devise (new ideas, machines, etc)
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to make up (falsehoods); fabricate
Related Words
See discover.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of invent
First recorded in 1425–75; back formation from late Middle English invented (past participle) “found, discovered,” from Latin invent(us) “encountered” (past participle of invenīre “to come upon, encounter, find,” from in- in- 2 + venīre “to come”; see also come) + -ed 2
Explanation
To invent is to create for the first time or make up. If you tell your friends that you invented the electric guitar, you are inventing a pretty unbelievable story about your past. When you think of the word invent, think of Thomas Alva Edison who invented the long-lasting light bulb, the motion picture camera, the phonograph, and the stock ticker. That's a lot of inventions! You couldn't invent a better story of American ingenuity, could you?
Vocabulary lists containing invent
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.
As much as Silicon Valley hucksters are vying to invent a cure for death, I doubt we’ll see that in the near future.
From Salon • May 8, 2026
Customers risk having their claim rejected, their policy cancelled and potential prosecution if they invent or exaggerate a claim.
From BBC • Apr. 15, 2026
If we’re gonna go really deep, I didn’t even invent the music that I wrote — maybe it was written millions of years ago, and I’m just tapping into something.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 26, 2026
They’re the ones that invent this stuff in the first place.
From Slate • Mar. 4, 2026
“It’s the one about failing ten thousand times when he tried to invent the light bulb, right? Is that how long you think it’s going to take me to pass the Lincoln assassination?”
From "Glitch" by Laura Martin
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.
