resolution

res·o·lu·tion

noun \ˌre-zə-ˈlü-shən\

Definition of RESOLUTION

1

: the act or process of resolving: as

a : the act of analyzing a complex notion into simpler ones

b : the act of answering : solving

c : the act of determining

d : the passing of a voice part from a dissonant to a consonant tone or the progression of a chord from dissonance to consonance

e : the separating of a chemical compound or mixture into its constituents

f (1) : the division of a prosodic element into its component parts (2) : the substitution in Greek or Latin prosody of two short syllables for a long syllable

g : the analysis of a vector into two or more vectors of which it is the sum

2

: the subsidence of a pathological state (as inflammation)

3

a : something that is resolved <made a resolution to mend my ways>

b : firmness of resolve

4

: a formal expression of opinion, will, or intent voted by an official body or assembled group

5

: the point in a literary work at which the chief dramatic complication is worked out

6

a : the process or capability of making distinguishable the individual parts of an object, closely adjacent optical images, or sources of light

b : a measure of the sharpness of an image or of the fineness with which a device (as a video display, printer, or scanner) can produce or record such an image usually expressed as the total number or density of pixels in the image <a resolution of 1200 dots per inch>

Examples of RESOLUTION

1. a court for the resolution of civil disputes
2. We found a resolution to the dispute.
3. computer screens with high resolutions
4. The monitor has excellent resolution.
5. In June, the demagogic militia leader Moqtada al Sadr … sponsored a resolution requiring the government to seek permission of the parliament before asking the U.N. to reauthorize the presence of foreign forces in Iraq. —Lawrence Wright, New Yorker, 22 Oct. 2007
6. Perrotta tells a good story in a top-shelf romance kind of way, and you'll very likely find yourself eager to get to the resolution once you've begun. —Paul J. Griffiths, Commonweal, 21 Dec. 2007
7. The new revelation was that, in high resolution, the valley showed deep channels and scours sharply incised into bedrock … —Bertram Schwarzschild, Physics Today, September 2007
8. In late August, the U.N. Security Council passed a resolution calling for peacekeepers to deploy to Darfur to stop a genocide that has claimed some 400,000 lives over the last three years. —New Republic, 30 Oct. 2006
9. The OMEGA spectrometer on the European Space Agency's Mars Express orbiter has gone where no spectrometer has gone before, covering near-infrared wavelengths and offering 10 times the resolution of earlier instruments. —George Musser, Scientific American, December 2005
10. But Hannah's brief resolution suddenly gave way, and all at once she clung to Kit, sobbing like a child. —Elizabeth George Speare, The Witch of Blackbird Pond, 1987
11. Here again it would seem that the vicarious experience just once of seeing another human being completely “blotto” should be sufficient to engender a firm and unbreakable resolution never to take a chance on making a similarly disgusting spectacle of oneself. —David A. Embury, The Fine Art of Mixing Drinks, 1970

Origin of RESOLUTION

Middle English resolucioun, from Anglo-French or Latin; Anglo-French resolucion, from Latin resolution-, resolutio, from resolvere (see ¹resolve)

First Known Use: 14th century

Related to RESOLUTION

Synonyms

award, call, conclusion, deliverance, determination, diagnosis, judgment (or judgement), opinion, decision, verdict

Antonyms

hesitation, indecision, indecisiveness, irresoluteness, irresolution, vacillation

Related Words

behest, charge, commandment, decree, dictate, directive, edict, instruction, mandate, order, word; last word, say-so; adjudication, disposition, doom, finding, ruling, sentence; choice, option, selection; consensus; belief, conviction, eye, feeling, mind, notion, persuasion, sentiment, view

Near Antonyms

deadlock, draw, halt, stalemate, standoff, tie

See Synonym Discussion at courage

Other Literature Terms

apophasis, bathos, bildungsroman, bowdlerize, caesura, coda, doggerel, euphemism, poesy, prosody

Rhymes with RESOLUTION

absolution, allocution, attribution, comminution, consecution, constitution, contribution, convolution, destitution, dissolution, distribution, elocution, evolution, execution, exsolution, institution, involution, persecution, prosecution, prostitution, restitution, retribution, revolution, Rosicrucian, substitution

res·o·lu·tion

noun \ˌrez-ə-ˈlü-shən\   (Medical Dictionary)

Medical Definition of RESOLUTION

1

: the separating of a chemical compound or mixture into its constituents

2

: the process or capability of making distinguishable the individual parts of an object, closely adjacent optical images, or sources of light

3

: the subsidence of a pathological state (as inflammation)