optimization

noun

op·​ti·​mi·​za·​tion ˌäp-tə-mə-ˈzā-shən 

: an act, process, or methodology of making something (such as a design, system, or decision) as fully perfect, functional, or effective as possible

specifically : the mathematical procedures (such as finding the maximum of a function) involved in this

Did you know?

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

Recent Examples on the Web

Solving an optimization problem The software also solved an optimization problem that previously had no single working formula. — Aman Tripathi, Interesting Engineering, 3 Sep. 2026

Plant closures take a while to be realized on the company's balance sheet, with the optimizations announced in November only being recognized in the third-quarter earnings report in August. — Dylan Sherman, Arkansas Online, 3 Sep. 2026

Splicing to conventional fiber also produced losses typically below 3 dB, leaving plenty of room for optimization. — Pawel Maniewski, New Atlas, 2 Sep. 2026

If your social media feed has spent the last two years pushing mouth tape, magnesium, static-cling window films and blackout curtains, the next chapter of sleep optimization is being written by the weather. — Ryan Brennan, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 2 Sep. 2026

Word History

Etymology

optimize + -ation

First Known Use

1857, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing optimization

• sub-optimization

Rhymes for optimization

• abbreviation
• abomination
• acceleration
• accentuation
• accommodation
• accreditation
• acculturation
• accumulation
• acetylation
• adjudication
• administration
• adulteration

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