as in concocted
to create or think of by clever use of the imagination
she quickly devised a new scheme when the first one failed
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Recent Examples of devised
In the 19th century, the British naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace devised his own theory of evolution, independent of Charles Darwin, while visiting the region to research his book, The Malay Archipelago.
—
Gisela Williams, Travel + Leisure, 8 Jan. 2026
And to that end, the Islamic Republic may have devised a failsafe for itself against popular anger.
—Efrat Lachter, FOXNews.com, 8 Jan. 2026
Last summer, researchers devised a method to translate internal representations of sentences from one language model to another.
—Ben Brubaker, Quanta Magazine, 7 Jan. 2026
Of all the schemes that humans have devised to keep sea lions from gorging on the salmon of the Columbia River basin, none has worked for long.
—Katherine J. Wu, The Atlantic, 7 Jan. 2026
As with Sátántangó, Tarr devised exquisite tracking shots that seemed to float through János’ unhappy universe, delivering one knockout image after another.
—Tim Grierson, Rolling Stone, 6 Jan. 2026
Each performance is different, devised by a rotating cast of participants; for instance, one Armageddon lineup featured a heel in the form of an ICE agent.
—Elyssa Goodman, Them., 23 Dec. 2025
Martinez devised a scheme to funnel her inheritance into his own account from April 2024 to December 2024, including creating a joint account in both their names without permission, Rundle said.
—Sofia Saric, Miami Herald, 23 Dec. 2025
In the absence of a fixed soundtrack, hundreds of alternatives have been devised, variously, by classical composers, film composers, rock bands, doom-metal groups, jazz ensembles, and noise collectives.
—Alex Ross, New Yorker, 22 Dec. 2025
Gisela Williams, Travel + Leisure, 8 Jan. 2026
And to that end, the Islamic Republic may have devised a failsafe for itself against popular anger.
—Efrat Lachter, FOXNews.com, 8 Jan. 2026
Last summer, researchers devised a method to translate internal representations of sentences from one language model to another.
—Ben Brubaker, Quanta Magazine, 7 Jan. 2026
Of all the schemes that humans have devised to keep sea lions from gorging on the salmon of the Columbia River basin, none has worked for long.
—Katherine J. Wu, The Atlantic, 7 Jan. 2026
As with Sátántangó, Tarr devised exquisite tracking shots that seemed to float through János’ unhappy universe, delivering one knockout image after another.
—Tim Grierson, Rolling Stone, 6 Jan. 2026
Each performance is different, devised by a rotating cast of participants; for instance, one Armageddon lineup featured a heel in the form of an ICE agent.
—Elyssa Goodman, Them., 23 Dec. 2025
Martinez devised a scheme to funnel her inheritance into his own account from April 2024 to December 2024, including creating a joint account in both their names without permission, Rundle said.
—Sofia Saric, Miami Herald, 23 Dec. 2025
In the absence of a fixed soundtrack, hundreds of alternatives have been devised, variously, by classical composers, film composers, rock bands, doom-metal groups, jazz ensembles, and noise collectives.
—Alex Ross, New Yorker, 22 Dec. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for devised
Verb
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Even so, del Toro has not merely concocted another Whale of a tale.—
Justin Chang,
New Yorker,
28 Oct. 2025
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Each district sends two children as tributes to the fight-to-the-death Hunger Games, concocted by the capitol to keep the populace distracted.—
Adam Bell,
Charlotte Observer,
27 Oct. 2025
Verb
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The wave machine someone invented to simulate the oceans of Pandora risks crushing the actors to death under eight pounds of steel?—
David Ehrlich,
IndieWire,
7 Nov. 2025
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Putnam raised the example of how, during the previous upswing, organizations like the Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts were invented just a few years apart, because people recognized that young people needed mentors.—
Nick Lichtenberg,
Fortune,
6 Nov. 2025
Verb
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For Running Fence, I was expected to travel regularly to Petaluma (about three hours north of San Francisco), where Fence would be constructed.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
7 Nov. 2025
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The Forbidden City was constructed in the 15th century during the Ming Dynasty as the imperial family’s workplace and residence.—
Fred He,
CNN Money,
6 Nov. 2025
Verb
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And problems continue despite the flight cancellations designed to relieve stress on controllers struggling to deal with the shutdown.—
Emma Tucker,
CNN Money,
8 Nov. 2025
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It is designed for easygoing travelers and families—and anyone who likes open air, hot cheese, and mountain views.—
Evie Carrick,
Travel + Leisure,
7 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Devised.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/devised. Accessed 10 Jan. 2026.
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