resolvere

Resolvere is a Latin verb meaning to loosen, untie, release, or, figuratively, to resolve or settle. It is formed with the prefix re- attached to solvo (to loosen), conveying the sense of undoing or freeing. The word belongs to the third conjugation, and its principal parts are resolvo, resolvere, resolvi, resolutum. The present infinitive is resolvere.

In classical Latin, resolvere is used both in literal and figurative senses. Literally, it can describe untying ropes, loosening bonds, or loosening rein. Figuratively, it appears with issues, doubts, or disputes: to resolve a question, to settle a dispute, or to disentangle a knotty problem. The verb supports a variety of constructions common to Latin verbs of the 3rd conjugation, including active, passive, and deponent-like uses depending on context.

Semantic extension over time links resolvere to meanings such as to solve, to settle, or to disentangle a matter. This broad sense is reflected in many Romance languages, whose cognate verbs include Italian risolvere, Spanish resolver, Portuguese resolver, and French résoudre. English inherits the sense of “to resolve” from this family, in both physical and abstract applications.

Related forms include the perfect passive participle resolutus, meaning freed or loosened, and the supine/resolut- forms used in certain compound verbal constructions. While resolvere itself is classical in tone, its recognizability today rests on its direct descendants in Romance languages and in English terms such as resolve and resolution.