ideation

noun

ide·​a·​tion ˌī-dē-ˈā-shən 

: the capacity for or the act of forming or entertaining ideas

Local coaches and mentors guide student teams through the process of ideation, market research, and business plan development …

—Maryann Mills

… the new space offers a smorgasbord of work environments—cozy two-chair-and-a-screen setups for small Zoom gatherings, … and floor-to-ceiling whiteboards in some places for spontaneous ideation …

—Chase DiFeliciantonio

see also suicidal ideation

Synonyms

• contrivance
• creativity
• fancy
• fantasy
• phantasy
• imagination
• imaginativeness
• invention
• inventiveness
• originality

Examples of ideation in a Sentence

a product designer who went from ideation to creation quickly

Recent Examples on the Web

Khare notes that each episode of Challenge Accepted can take about a year from ideation to hitting upload, with other challenges including training like a NASA astronaut, or a chess grandmaster, or learning how to be a runway model, or most recently learning to become a treasure hunter. —Alex Weprin, The Hollywood Reporter, 10 May 2024

Kindle Collaboration Start with personal invitations to a small group of fans to collaborate on developing a new product, and give them access to your core product and design team at every step of your process, from ideation to packaging. —Josh Camitta, Rolling Stone, 25 Apr. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1805, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing ideation

• suicidal ideation

Medical Definition

ideation

noun

ide·​a·​tion ˌīd-ē-ˈā-shən 

: the capacity for or the act of forming or entertaining ideas

The spectrum of paranoid ideation goes from mild distrust and suspiciousness to full-blown persecutory delusions.

—R. Bianchi and L. Janin, Occupational Medicine

The cognitive ability to generate many creative ideas, or creative ideation, is one facet of creativity.

—Tammy C. Pannells and Amy F. Claxton, Creativity Research Journal

see also suicidal ideation