Meaning & use

invent

verb·Everyday

To create or design something new that did not previously exist.

See it in a sentence

Alexander Graham Bell is credited with inventing the telephone in 1876.

The children invented a new game using only a ball and some chalk.

A note on using this word

Invent implies genuine originality, whereas "discover" refers to finding something that already existed but was previously unknown.

Words with a similar meaning

createdeviseoriginate

Choose a synonym to suit the sentence. Meanings can overlap without being identical.

Words with an opposite meaning

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