invented

Invented is the past tense and past participle of the verb invent. To invent is to create something new that did not exist before or to present something as newly created. In everyday use, invented often describes devices, methods, ideas, or processes that required imagination, design, and testing.

The word comes from the Latin invenire, meaning to find, via Old French inventer, and entered English through Middle English. Invention can refer to tangible objects such as tools and machines, as well as intangible concepts like theories, plans, or constructed languages. The act of inventing typically involves problem framing, ideation, experimentation, prototyping, and verification.

In modern economies, inventions are frequently protected by patents, which grant temporary exclusive rights to the inventor. The development of an invention often results from collaborative work, iterative improvement, and the linking of existing knowledge in new ways.

Not every notable outcome is universally regarded as an invention; some advances are discoveries or improvements rather than entirely new creations. The term is also used in cultural contexts to describe things that are deliberately created, such as invented languages, fictional worlds, or stylized techniques in art and music.