come up with new ideas or approaches

innovate

verb|/ˈɪn.ə.veɪt/

To introduce new methods, ideas, or products

Examples

In a meeting

We need to innovate our customer service model to stay competitive in this market.

Over coffee

She's always trying to innovate her home cooking with unexpected ingredient combinations.

Why this word

create

innovate emphasizes introducing new methods or ideas, while create is broader about bringing anything into existence

invent

innovate focuses on novel application or improvement of existing things, while invent means creating something entirely new

improve

innovate implies introducing significant novelty, while improve just means making something better

Usage tip

Use when emphasizing the introduction of something truly new rather than just improving what exists. Distinguished from 'iterate' which implies incremental changes.

Etymology

Latin: innovatus, from in- (into) + novus (new)

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