in·ven·tion

[in-ven-shuhn]
noun
1.
the act of inventing.
2.
U.S. Patent Law. a new, useful process, machine, improvement, etc., that did not exist previously and that is recognized as the product of some unique intuition or genius, as distinguished from ordinary mechanical skill or craftsmanship.
3.
anything invented or devised.
4.
the power or faculty of inventing, devising, or originating.
5.
an act or instance of creating or producing by exercise of the imagination, especially in art, music, etc.
6.
something fabricated, as a false statement.
7.
Sociology. the creation of a new culture trait, pattern, etc.
8.
Music. a short piece, contrapuntal in nature, generally based on one subject.
9.
Rhetoric. (traditionally) one of the five steps in speech preparation, the process of choosing ideas appropriate to the subject, audience, and occasion.
10.
Archaic. the act of finding.
Origin:
1300–50; Middle English invencio(u)n < Latin inventiōn- (stem of inventiō) a finding out, equivalent to invent(us) (see invent) + -iōn- -ion

Related forms
in·ven·tion·al, adjective
in·ven·tion·less, adjective
pre·in·ven·tion, noun
self-in·ven·tion, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Collins
World English Dictionary
invention (ɪnˈvɛnʃən) [Click for IPA pronunciation guide]
 
—n
1.  the act or process of inventing
2.  something that is invented
3.  patent law the discovery or production of some new or improved process or machine that is both useful and is not obvious to persons skilled in the particular field
4.  creative power or ability; inventive skill
5.  euphemistic a fabrication; lie
6.  (in traditional rhetoric) one of the five steps in preparing a speech or discourse: the process of finding suitable topics on which to talk or write
7.  music a short piece consisting of two or three parts usually in imitative counterpoint
8.  sociol the creation of a new cultural pattern or trait
 
in'ventional
 
—adj
 
in'ventionless
 
—adj

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History

invention
mid-14c., from L. inventionem (nom. inventio) "a finding, discovery," from inventus, pp. of invenire "devise, discover, find," from in- "in, on" + venire "to come" (see venue). Meaning of "thing invented" is first recorded 1510s. Invent is from late 15c. Etymological sense
preserved in Invention of the Cross, Church festival (May 3) celebrating the reputed finding of the Cross of the Crucifixion by Helena, mother of Constantine, in 326 C.E.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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Encyclopedia Britannica
Encyclopedia

invention

in music, any of a number of markedly dissimilar compositional forms dating from the 16th century to the present. While its exact meaning has never been defined, the term has often been affixed to compositions of a novel, progressive character-i.e., compositions that do not fit established categories. The earliest-known use of the term in Premier livre des inventions musicales (1555; "First Book of Musical Inventions") by the Frenchman Clement Janequin clearly alludes to the composer's highly original programmatic chansons-secular French part-songs containing extramusical allusions (e.g., imitations of battle sounds and birdcalls). Similarly capricious or novel effects occur in John Dowland's Invention for Two to Play upon One Lute (1597); Lodovico da Viadana's Cento concerti ecclesiasticiNova inventione (1602; "One-Hundred Ecclesiastical ConcertiNew Invention"), the first sacred collection to require a basso continuo; and Antonio Vivaldi's Il cimento dell'armonia e dell'invenzione, Opus 8 (1720; "The Contest Between Harmony and Invention"), which contains, among others, a number of programmatic concerti

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Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
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Example sentences
It may have tripled its efficiency since its invention.
Kearns said a new combination of parts made his invention unique.
Before the invention of artificial light, many artists could only work during the day.
There's this magic invention called e-mail, or better yet, walk down the hall.
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