resolution

American  

[rez-uh-loo-shuhn] / ˌrɛz əˈlu ʃən /

noun

• resolutions
  plural

1. a formal expression of opinion or intention made, usually after voting, by a formal organization, a legislature, a club, or other group.

2. the act of resolving or determining upon an action, course of action, method, procedure, etc.

3. a resolve; a decision or determination.

   to make a firm resolution to do something.

   Her resolution to clear her parents' name allowed her no other focus in life.

4. the mental state or quality of being resolved or resolute; firmness of purpose.

   She showed her resolution by not attending the meeting.

   Synonyms:

   fortitude, strength, tenacity, perseverance, determination, resolve

5. the act or process of resolving or separating something into constituent or elementary parts.

6. the resulting state.

7. Optics. the act, process, or capability of distinguishing between two separate but adjacent objects or sources of light or between two nearly equal wavelengths.

8. a solution, accommodation, or settling of a problem, controversy, etc.

9. Music.

   1. the progression of a voice part or of the harmony as a whole from a dissonance to a consonance.

   2. the tone or chord to which a dissonance is resolved.

10. reduction to a simpler form; conversion.

11. Medicine/Medical. the reduction or disappearance of a swelling or inflammation without suppuration.

12. the degree of sharpness of a computer-generated image as measured by the number of dots per linear inch in a hard-copy printout or the number of pixels across and down on a display screen.

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resolution British  

/ ˌrɛzəˈluːʃən /

noun

1. the act or an instance of resolving

2. the condition or quality of being resolute; firmness or determination

3. something resolved or determined; decision

4. a formal expression of opinion by a meeting, esp one agreed by a vote

5. a judicial decision on some matter; verdict; judgment

6. the act or process of separating something into its constituent parts or elements

7. med

   1. return from a pathological to a normal condition

   2. subsidence of the symptoms of a disease, esp the disappearance of inflammation without the formation of pus

8. music the process in harmony whereby a dissonant note or chord is followed by a consonant one

9. the ability of a television or film image to reproduce fine detail

10. physics another word for resolving power

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• nonresolution
  noun
• preresolution
  noun
• resolutioner
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• resolutions
  plural

Etymology

Origin of resolution

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Latin resolūtiōn-, stem of resolūtiō “looseness, a release” equivalent to resolute + -ion

Explanation

The noun resolution has a few related meanings having to do with being firmly determined about something. If you lack determination, you'll never fulfill your New Year's resolutions. Resolution is the noun form of the verb resolve, derived from the Latin resolvere, "to loosen, undo, settle." We can still see this meaning of resolution in the sense of "an explanation" or "a solution" — when a problem, conflict, or mystery reaches its resolution, it has been "undone," so to speak. If you approach a task with resolution, you do it with determination. And if you make a resolution, you make a firm decision to do something or meet some goal.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

resolution resolutions

"In the absence of unanimous support, I chose to defer the decision," he said, adding that there was no resolution even six months later.

From BBC ● Aug. 12, 2026

Ms. Dhillon told the law school she wants a voluntary resolution to bring the school into compliance.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 10, 2026

A settlement between parties who were never adverse is not the resolution of a controversy; it is a press release with a case number.

From Slate ● Aug. 10, 2026

Silver has expressed a desire for a resolution, saying in June that it “needs to be wrapped up before next season.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 7, 2026

He worried that his wife’s taking such a radical stand could harm his political future, so he encouraged Elizabeth to drop the proposal and threatened to leave town if she read the resolution.

From "Votes for Women!" by Winifred Conkling

Contempt resolutions generally would go through the full Senate, and bypassing that route would open fresh legal and political questions for President Donald Trump's administration.

From Barron's ● Aug. 6, 2026

"With the festive season now behind most of us and New Year's resolutions in full swing, this research can help inform people's plans for healthy aging in 2026," she said.

From Science Daily ● Jun. 28, 2026

The replacement tickets ended up cutting Fountain off from his refund opportunity, as per the terms of StubHub’s “FanProtect Guarantee,” which leaves decisions on resolutions to the platform’s “sole discretion.”

From Slate ● Jun. 24, 2026

Unlike UN Security Council resolutions, those from the General Assembly are not legally binding.

From BBC ● Jun. 20, 2026

The committee report consisted of seven resolutions that addressed this salient question: What are the powers vested in Congress, under the present constitution, relating to the abolition of slavery”?

From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis

Related Words

• conclusion
• decision
• finding
• motion
• outcome
• proposal
• proposition
• recommendation
• settlement
• solution
• verdict