figure out

verb

figured out; figuring out; figures out

transitive verb

1
: discover, determine
try to figure out a way to do it
2
: solve, fathom
figure out a problem

Examples of figure out in a Sentence

a book of brainteasers that even a really clever person won't have an easy time figuring out
Recent Examples on the Web According to Jim Koch, chairman of Boston Beer Company, which makes Samuel Adams, taste breakthroughs have only been possible in recent years as brewers figured out a low temperature distillation process. Jason Ma, Fortune Europe, 2 June 2024 Every team in baseball needs to figure out a way to pitch at least 1,400 innings a season. Dieter Kurtenbach, The Mercury News, 1 June 2024 Rather than creating an over-the-top vehicle and then figuring out how to stage scenes on it, the team built the truck to facilitate specific shots. Gabe Cohn, New York Times, 31 May 2024 The delay is meant to give U.S. officials time to form a strategy on shipping advanced chips abroad, and figure out who will manage and secure centers where AI models are trained, people told Bloomberg. Britney Nguyen, Quartz, 31 May 2024 See all Example Sentences for figure out 

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'figure out.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1600, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of figure out was in 1600

Dictionary Entries Near figure out

Cite this Entry

“Figure out.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/figure%20out. Accessed 6 Jun. 2024.

Kids Definition

figure out

verb
1
: find out, discover
try to figure out a way to do it
2
: solve
figure out a problem

More from Merriam-Webster on figure out

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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