figure out

verb

figured out; figuring out; figures out

transitive verb

1
: discover, determine
try to figure out a way to do it
2
: solve, fathom
figure out a problem

Examples of figure out in a Sentence

a book of brainteasers that even a really clever person won't have an easy time figuring out
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
The federal government in the fall lowered the Fair Market Rent for metro Denver, the average rent used to figure out how much vouchers can cover. Sam Tabachnik, Denver Post, 1 Aug. 2025 And Just Like That… writers—had to figure out what could work here, now that the characters were 20 years older. Rachel Burchfield, Forbes.com, 1 Aug. 2025 There’s a lot to dissect as the Twins try to figure out what has gone wrong over the past two seasons. Betsy Helfand, Twin Cities, 1 Aug. 2025 The Red Sox were one of many teams that use modeling and try to figure out what the best values are on and its' all about efficiency and getting the best deal and this and that and the other thing. Mike Cole, MSNBC Newsweek, 1 Aug. 2025 See All Example Sentences for figure out

Word History

First Known Use

1600, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of figure out was in 1600

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Figure out.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/figure%20out. Accessed 5 Aug. 2025.

Kids Definition

figure out

verb
1
: find out, discover
try to figure out a way to do it
2
: solve
figure out a problem

More from Merriam-Webster on figure out

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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