optimization
noun
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Optimization started its gradual perfection in mid-19th-century English, when it was derived from optimize, a word first used in the early part of that same century with the meaning "to make the best or most of." In basic applications, optimization refers to the act or process of making something as good as it can be. In the 21st century, it has seen much use in technical contexts having to do with attaining the best possible functionality, as in "network optimization" and "search engine optimization" (SEO). Like the words optimum and optimism (which refer, respectively, to the amount or degree of something that is best or most effective, and to a feeling or belief that good things will happen in the future), optimize and optimization derive from Latin optimus, meaning "best."
Examples of optimization in a Sentence
Allbusiness, Forbes.com, 5 Aug. 2025
Where Johnson seeks to embody biological optimization, Diamandis seeks to articulate the case for its feasibility.
—Tad Friend, New Yorker, 4 Aug. 2025
This helps ensure quality control, hardware optimization, and software integration remain a crucial part of the production process.
—New Atlas, 1 Aug. 2025
The company also offers marketing and IT services for small businesses, including:
Website optimization
Branding
Online marketing
How does EarthLink compare to other providers?
—David Brinkerhoff, USA Today, 29 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for optimization
Cite this Entry
“Optimization.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/optimization. Accessed 8 Aug. 2025.
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