invention

noun in·ven·tion \ in-ˈven(t)-shən \

|Updated on: 13 Aug 2018

Examples: invention in a Sentence

Editor's Note: What is the difference between innovation and invention?

Definition of invention

1 : discovery, finding

2 : productive imagination : inventiveness

3 a : something invented: such as

(1) : a product of the imagination; especially : a false conception

(2) : a device, contrivance, or process originated after study and experiment

b : a short keyboard composition featuring two- or three-part counterpoint

4 : the act or process of inventing

See invention defined for English-language learners

See invention defined for kids

Examples of invention in a Sentence

The light bulb was one of the most important inventions of the 19th century.
The stories he told about his military service were just inventions.
His explanation was pure invention.
Parts of the movie were accurate, but much of it was invention.
the invention of a new product
the invention of a false story
an artist with exceptional powers of invention

Recent Examples of invention from the Web

Nähr was largely self-taught, and his life and career feel like a single, sustained act of self-invention.

— j.s. marcus, WSJ, "Faces of Old Vienna," 12 July 2018
Martinez is the creator of what is arguably the 20th century’s most epochal invention—the frozen margarita machine—and, at the age of 73, the Dallas restaurateur is an indisputable authority on the cocktail in the salt-rimmed glass.

— franz lidz, Smithsonian, "The Uniquely Texan Origins of the Frozen Margarita," 27 June 2018
The point was for Edison to showcase his lab’s glorious new invention: the kinetograph.

— simon rich, The New Yorker, "Edison Labs, 1891," 18 June 2018
In his blending of art, invention, and scientific investigation, Ford is a modern-day Leonardo da Vinci.

— sandra upson, WIRED, "Westworld Recap, Season 2 Episode 7: Decoding Da Vinci," 4 June 2018
Rather than moralizing over Onira Tech’s invention, Reverie’s pilot simply uses it as a framing device, like a wormhole that takes Kint to new mindscapes instead of alien planets.

— adi robertson, The Verge, "NBC’s new VR thriller Reverie is a schmaltzy take on techno-dystopia," 30 May 2018
Like innumerable other inventions, the ideas originated in nature.

— BostonGlobe.com, "Five things to do around Boston, May 21-27," 18 May 2018
Front Porch residents have also tested another Silicon Valley invention: the AlterG Bionic Leg, a wearable rehabilitation robotic device that is therapeutic.

— sandiegouniontribune.com, "Meet 'Jimmy' the robot, new friend for senior California couple," 16 May 2018
The invention of the silo bag -- something that was derided by supporters of Macri’s predecessor, Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner -- has also given farmers the ability to store beans and wait for a favorable exchange rate and crop prices.

— jonathan gilbert, Bloomberg.com, "‘Start Selling So Dollars Come in,’ Argentine Farmers Are Told," 15 May 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'invention.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

What is the difference between innovation and invention?

The words innovation and invention overlap semantically but are really quite distinct.

Invention can refer to a type of musical composition, a falsehood, a discovery, or any product of the imagination. The sense of invention most likely to be confused with innovation is “a device, contrivance, or process originated after study and experiment,” usually something which has not previously been in existence.

Innovation, for its part, can refer to something new or to a change made to an existing product, idea, or field. One might say that the first telephone was an invention, the first cellular telephone either an invention or an innovation, and the first smartphone an innovation.

First Known Use of invention

14th century

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

NEW! Time Traveler

invention Synonyms

INVENTION Defined for Kids

invention

noun in·ven·tion \ in-ˈven-shən \

Definition of invention for Students

1 : an original device or process

2 : ³lie

The story was just an invention.

3 : the act or process of inventing

4 : the ability to think of new ideas

He was a man of invention.

Law Dictionary

invention

noun in·ven·tion

legal Definition of invention

: a device, process, or discovery under U.S. patent law that is new and useful, that reflects extraordinary creative ability or skill, and that makes a distinct and recognized contribution to and advancement of science; also : the act or process of creating such an invention — compare aggregation, combination, equivalent