formulate

English

Etymology

From formula +‎ -ate.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈfɔː(ɹ)mjʊleɪt/
  • Audio (US):(file)

Verb

formulate (third-person singular simple present formulates, present participle formulating, simple past and past participle formulated)

  1. (transitive) To put into a clear and definite form of statement or expression.
    He failed to formulate his ideas more clearly.
    • 1876, George Perkins Marsh, Mediaeval and Modern Saints and Miracles:
      The Assembly then formulated its demands, which were thirty in number, including the removal of all Huguenot temples built near churches
    • 1988, Andrew Radford, Transformational Grammar, Cambridge: University Press, →ISBN, page 19:
      Another source of evidence supporting the conclusion that children learn language by formulating a set of rules comes from the errors that they produce. A case in point are overgeneralized past tense forms like comed, goed, seed, buyed, bringed, etc. frequently used by young children.
    • 2020 February 7, AJ Willingham, “What a great week for rescue pets!”, in CNN[1]:
      Look closely at the pretty seashell print on these blouses. They’re actually formulated from mathematical equations!

Derived terms

Translations

Further reading

Esperanto

Adverb

formulate

  1. present adverbial passive participle of formuli

Italian

Etymology 1

Verb

formulate

  1. inflection of formulare:
    1. second-person plural present indicative
    2. second-person plural imperative

Etymology 2

Participle

formulate f pl

  1. feminine plural of formulato

Spanish

Verb

formulate

  1. second-person singular voseo imperative of formular combined with te