ə̇nˈvent transitive verb
( -ed/-ing/-s )
Etymology: Middle English inventen, from Latin inventus, past participle of invenire, from in- in- (II) + venire to come — more at come
1. : to search out or come upon : find , discover
must invent beds for them — Frederick Way
this polymer was invented in England and is an outgrowth of earlier research — Leonard Maner & Harry Wechsler
2. : to think up or imagine : concoct mentally : fabricate
his fund of knowledge seemed inexhaustible, for what he didn't know he invented — Alvin Redman
preparing in his mind the harshest response he could invent — W.F.Davis
3. : to create or produce for the first time : be the author of : devise , originate
he invented and secured a patent … for a rock-boring machine — B.A.Soule
if the Semitic letters were not derived from Egypt they must have been invented by the Phoenicians — Edward Clodd
invented an ingenious kind of ball game — Margaret Bean
has invented plenty of good tunes of his own — Sigmund Spaeth
4. obsolete : found , establish , institute , initiate
festival days in old time were invented for recreation — John Northbrooke
Synonyms: see contrive