resolution
Americannoun
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a formal expression of opinion or intention made, usually after voting, by a formal organization, a legislature, a club, or other group.
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the act of resolving or determining upon an action, course of action, method, procedure, etc.
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a resolve; a decision or determination.
to make a firm resolution to do something.
Her resolution to clear her parents' name allowed her no other focus in life.
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the mental state or quality of being resolved or resolute; firmness of purpose.
She showed her resolution by not attending the meeting.
- Synonyms:
- fortitude, strength, tenacity, perseverance, determination, resolve
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the act or process of resolving or separating something into constituent or elementary parts.
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the resulting state.
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Optics. the act, process, or capability of distinguishing between two separate but adjacent objects or sources of light or between two nearly equal wavelengths.
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a solution, accommodation, or settling of a problem, controversy, etc.
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Music.
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the progression of a voice part or of the harmony as a whole from a dissonance to a consonance.
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the tone or chord to which a dissonance is resolved.
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reduction to a simpler form; conversion.
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Medicine/Medical. the reduction or disappearance of a swelling or inflammation without suppuration.
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the degree of sharpness of a computer-generated image as measured by the number of dots per linear inch in a hard-copy printout or the number of pixels across and down on a display screen.
noun
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the act or an instance of resolving
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the condition or quality of being resolute; firmness or determination
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something resolved or determined; decision
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a formal expression of opinion by a meeting, esp one agreed by a vote
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a judicial decision on some matter; verdict; judgment
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the act or process of separating something into its constituent parts or elements
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med
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return from a pathological to a normal condition
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subsidence of the symptoms of a disease, esp the disappearance of inflammation without the formation of pus
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music the process in harmony whereby a dissonant note or chord is followed by a consonant one
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the ability of a television or film image to reproduce fine detail
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physics another word for resolving power
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of resolution
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Latin resolūtiōn-, stem of resolūtiō “looseness, a release” equivalent to resolute + -ion
Explanation
The noun resolution has a few related meanings having to do with being firmly determined about something. If you lack determination, you'll never fulfill your New Year's resolutions. Resolution is the noun form of the verb resolve, derived from the Latin resolvere, "to loosen, undo, settle." We can still see this meaning of resolution in the sense of "an explanation" or "a solution" — when a problem, conflict, or mystery reaches its resolution, it has been "undone," so to speak. If you approach a task with resolution, you do it with determination. And if you make a resolution, you make a firm decision to do something or meet some goal.
Vocabulary lists containing resolution
The SAT: Multiple-Meaning Words, List 4
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Words for a New Year
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"Diary of a Wimpy Kid" by Jeff Kinney
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
However, without a confirmed source or a resolution in sight, consumers have to make their own choices about how to avoid contracting Cyclospora cayetanensis — a parasite that causes explosive diarrhea, among other gastrointestinal symptoms.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 20, 2026
Gwent Police said the incident involving Asghar on Wednesday night is not viewed as politically motivated and the man involved received a community resolution.
From BBC ● Jul. 17, 2026
“If you’re concerned about this, if you’re inclined to believe the president, demand proof, demand resolution in court at trial with the the showing of evidence,” he said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 17, 2026
Building larger detectors and improving their spatial resolution can increase the odds of observing the faint signals they produce, but doing so often makes the instruments more complicated and expensive.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 17, 2026
The only resolution that did not pass so easily was the suffrage amendment.
From "Votes for Women!" by Winifred Conkling
"With the festive season now behind most of us and New Year's resolutions in full swing, this research can help inform people's plans for healthy aging in 2026," she said.
From Science Daily ● Jun. 28, 2026
The replacement tickets ended up cutting Fountain off from his refund opportunity, as per the terms of StubHub’s “FanProtect Guarantee,” which leaves decisions on resolutions to the platform’s “sole discretion.”
From Slate ● Jun. 24, 2026
Unlike UN Security Council resolutions, those from the General Assembly are not legally binding.
From BBC ● Jun. 20, 2026
Pyongyang withdrew from the Non-Proliferation Treaty in 1993 and has since conducted six nuclear tests, subjecting it to multiple United Nations resolutions, and is believed to possess dozens of nuclear warheads.
From Barron's ● Jun. 4, 2026
A group of Methodist, Baptist, Episcopal, Presbyterian, and Universalist ministers—all men—dominated the discussion that day, challenging the women’s rights resolutions that had been presented.
From "Votes for Women!" by Winifred Conkling
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.