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• think tank
  think tank

  noun

  a research institute or organization employed to solve complex problems or predict or plan future developments, as in military, political, or social areas.
• think-tank
  think-tank

  noun

  a group of specialists organized by a business enterprise, governmental body, etc, and commissioned to undertake intensive study and research into specified problems

think tank

American  

noun

think tanks plural

1. a research institute or organization employed to solve complex problems or predict or plan future developments, as in military, political, or social areas.

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think-tank British  

noun

1. informal a group of specialists organized by a business enterprise, governmental body, etc, and commissioned to undertake intensive study and research into specified problems

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think tank Cultural  

1. An institution in which scholars pursue research in public policy. Largely funded by endowments and grants, think tanks work to improve public awareness of policy issues (through publications) and to influence the government to act upon issues of national importance. (See power elite.)

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think tank Idioms  

1. A group or organization dedicated to problem-solving and research, especially in such areas as technology, social or political strategy, and the military. For example, The congressional leaders rely too heavily on that conservative think tank. This term originated about 1900 as a facetious colloquialism for brain and was given its new meaning about 1950.

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• think tanks
  plural

Etymology

Origin of think tank

1900–05 for earlier sense “brain”; 1955–60 for current sense

Example Sentences

Kim Parker, director of social trends research at the Pew Research Center, a nonpartisan think tank, said Americans are making pragmatic decisions about eldercare.

From MarketWatch • Jun. 23, 2026

German exports to China fell by the equivalent of about 1 percentage point of the country’s gross domestic product over the past five years, an analysis by the Centre for European Reform think tank found.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 19, 2026

The Health Foundation think tank estimated in 2024 that a NHS-style model of universal and comprehensive care could cost around £17bn in additional funding by 2035/36.

From BBC • Jun. 19, 2026

The Swiss People’s Party put forward the referendum and framed it as a sustainability initiative, according to researchers at the Migration Policy Institute, an independent nonprofit think tank based in Washington, D.C.

From Barron's • Jun. 19, 2026

As an analyst for the Rand Corporation, a think tank focused on military and international issues, he had been granted permission to conduct research at the Pentagon, home of the United States Department of Defense.

From "Most Dangerous: Daniel Ellsberg and the Secret History of the Vietnam War" by Steve Sheinkin