English Explanatory Dictionary

resolve

English dictionary entry

Meanings

verb
  1. To find a solution to (a problem).
  2. To reduce to simple or intelligible notions; to make clear or certain; to unravel; to explain.
  3. To make a firm decision to do something. To become determined to reach a certain goal or take a certain action.
  4. To determine or decide in purpose; to make ready in mind; to fix; to settle.
  5. To come to an agreement or make peace; patch up relationship, settle differences, bury the hatchet.
  6. To break down into constituent parts; to decompose; to disintegrate; to return to a simpler constitution or a primeval state.
  7. To cause to perceive or understand; to acquaint; to inform; to convince; to assure; to make certain.
  8. To cause a chord to go from dissonance to consonance.
  9. To render visible or distinguishable the parts of something.
  10. To find the IP address of a hostname, or the entity referred to by a symbol in source code; to look up.
  11. To melt; to dissolve; to liquefy or soften (a solid).
  12. To melt; to dissolve; to become liquid.
noun
  1. Determination; will power.
  2. A determination to do something; a fixed decision.
  3. An act of resolving something; resolution.
verb
  1. Alternative spelling of re-solve.

Pronunciation

/ɹɪˈzɒlv/ /ɹiːˈzɒlv/ /ɹɪˈzɑlv/ /ɹɪˈzɔlv/ en-us-resolve.ogg

Word forms

resolve resolves resolving resolved

Etymology

From Middle English resolven, from Old French resolver, a learned borrowing of Latin resolvō (“loosen, thaw, melt, resolve”), equivalent to re- + solve. Piecewise doublet of re-solve.

Synonyms

decipher upsolve work out absolve get to the bottom of iron out meliorate puzzle out ravel reason out resolve riddle sleuth solve tease out think out unpuzzle unravel unriddle unsolve Any from Thesaurus:untangle fortitude inner strength resoluteness sticktoitiveness tenacity

Related words

set of one's jaw

Derived words

misresolve preresolve proresolving reresolve resolvability resolvable resolvase resolvend resolver self-resolving superresolve time-resolved unresolve

Translations

Finnish: sulattaa German: schmelzen German: lösen German: auflösen German: verflüssigen German: aufweichen German: erweichen Middle English: resolven Spanish: disolver
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