solve
Americanverb (used with object)
verb
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to find the explanation for or solution to (a mystery, problem, etc)
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maths
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to work out the answer to (a problem)
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to obtain the roots of (an equation)
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Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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solvesimple
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solvessimple
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have solvedperfect
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has solvedperfect
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am solvingprogressive
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are solvingprogressive
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is solvingprogressive
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have been solvingperfect progressive
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has been solvingperfect progressive
Past
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solvedsimple
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had solvedperfect
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was solvingprogressive
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were solvingprogressive
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had been solvingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of solve
First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English solven, from Latin solvere “to loosen, free, release”
Explanation
To solve something is to find a solution, like figuring out the answer to a complex riddle. The verb solve is often used in mathematics, and it means to answer a math problem. You can solve other, non-mathematical problems too — like the question of what to wear when you've run out of clean clothes (your sibling's clothes!). The word solve originally came from the Latin solvere, which meant "to loosen or untie." If you think of any kind of complex problem as a knot, then the original definition of solve still makes sense!
Vocabulary lists containing solve
Jim Burke's Academic Vocabulary List
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TEKS ELAR Academic Vocabulary List (5th-7th grades)
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"Kids Are Inventors, Too"
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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:
While he was running to be elected prime minister, Carney vowed to solve it with an "elbows up" approach - referencing a combative style of hockey coined by the late Gordie Howe himself.
From BBC ● Jul. 24, 2026
Then combine your sound bites, pronounced as they appear in the original clue answers, to solve the final mystery word.
From Slate ● Jul. 23, 2026
We’re not sure that any artificial intelligence that currently exists can solve that particular problem.
From Salon ● Jul. 22, 2026
“We need to stop asking whose case is this, and rather ask how do we solve this case together? How do we solve the problem together?”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 21, 2026
"Thanks to Deirdre, everyone knows we're trying to solve Kendra's case," Nancy said.
From "Scream for Ice Cream: Nancy Drew and the Clue Crew, #2" by Carolyn Keene
When we are asleep, our brain consolidates the memories of the day, processes emotions, and solves problems that defied it in the waking hours.
From BBC ● Jul. 19, 2026
“While we’re coming in late, we’re coming in with technology advantages and something unique that solves the problems that these companies have,” Palkhiwala said.
From Barron's ● Jun. 25, 2026
“The innovation itself is remarkable. It’s not obvious to me which unmet consumer need evo uniquely solves, especially at roughly double the price of pods.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 22, 2026
Miller: If it solves climate change, it can have my job.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 16, 2026
Head-to-head's where Kid A solves a problem on the left of the blackboard while Kid B solves the same problem on the right, like a race.
From "Black Swan Green" by David Mitchell
Deng and his collaborators solved a problem within broader attempts to mathematically connect equations governing the motion of gases from the smallest to the largest scales, according to the university.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 24, 2026
“I’ve never solved a problem so quickly, before or after.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 17, 2026
You would have thought we would have solved this sort of thing with COVID, but we haven’t.
From Slate ● Jul. 17, 2026
“But until this mystery is solved, it is best to avoid these foods altogether.”
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 14, 2026
Harrison had solved the problem of fixing longitude.
From "Shipwreck at the Bottom of the World" by Jennifer Armstrong
Despite those comparable results, the women who ate within an eight- to nine-hour period performed significantly better on tests measuring spatial planning and problem solving than those who continued eating across 12 hours.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 27, 2026
Deng, a 37-year-old mathematics professor at the University of Chicago, was honoured for his work solving another century-old problem.
From BBC ● Jul. 24, 2026
AI's progress has been fast: at the 2024 IMO, Google achieved a silver-medal score, solving four of the six problems over two to three days.
From Barron's ● Jul. 23, 2026
Change often starts locally, she says, with people solving the problem in front of them.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 20, 2026
Something major had happened to those strands over the summer, but now April had arrived with me no closer to solving the mystery.
From "Legendary Frybread Drive-In" by Cynthia Leitich Smith
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.
