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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

See Examples For:

think tank think-tank

“The perception in the Trump administration is that Israel is a loose cannon,” said Elizabeth Tsurkov, a senior nonresident fellow at the New Lines Institute for Strategy and Policy, a Washington think tank.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 21, 2026

She is the former head of the New Economic Foundation think tank and it wants bolder cost of living measures – from rent controls to making bus journeys entirely free for under 25s.

From BBC ● Jul. 20, 2026

"She is an unorthodox choice, as all previous Hungarian presidents had political experience," Peter Kreko, head of the Budapest-based Political Capital think tank, told AFP.

From Barron's ● Jul. 20, 2026

“They haven’t moved the needle,” said Adam Isacson, an analyst at the Washington Office on Latin America, a think tank.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 20, 2026

“Did y’all know Petey has a meeting with a think tank on Saturday?”

From "The Last Last-Day-of-Summer" by Lamar Giles

The figures have been much the same for years, both at Gallup and when tracked by the Employee Benefit Research Institute, a think-tank.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 17, 2026

There are several possible reasons for the deterioration, suggests Sam Cranny-Evans from the Royal United Services Institute think-tank in London.

From BBC ● Jul. 10, 2026

"Exports rose 0.9% year-on-year despite steep reciprocal tariffs between May 2025 and February 2026," Ajay Srivastava of the Global Trade and Research Initiative think-tank told the BBC.

From BBC ● May 23, 2026

Both are sons of immigrants, although the mayor was born in Uganda while the think-tank president, a Brooklyn native, is a natural-born American.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 1, 2026

When you got nothing but yourself between you and the wolf, you learn to fly, and keep your think-tank in running order.

From Michael O'Halloran by Stratton-Porter, Gene