create

verb

Simple meaning

To bring into existence.

Pronunciation

Say it like this:

kreeayt

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US device voice

IPA pronunciation (US)

kɹiˈeɪt

This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.

IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.

Word Review

Definition

Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.

verb

transitive
To bring into existence; (sometimes in particular:)
“The company was created 25 years ago.”
To make or produce from other (e.g. raw, unrefined or scattered) materials or combinable elements or ideas; to design or invest with a new form, shape, function, etc.
especially of a god
To bring into existence out of nothing, without the prior existence of the materials or elements used.
transitive
To cause, to bring (a non-object) about by an action, behavior, or event, to occasion.
Invest with a new title, office, or rank
intransitive
To be or do something creative, imaginative, originative.

Word at a Glance

Difficulty: A1 · Beginner
Frequency: Very Common
Typical Use: Everyday English

Word Aura™

How this word commonly comes across.

Aura for this meaning

This meaning: To bring into existence; (sometimes in particular:)

Used this way, create is a common word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.

Heard in a sentence

“The company was created 25 years ago.”

Emotional tone: Neutral
Formality: Neutral
Intensity: Not strongly marked
How common: Common
Connotation: No strong connotation
Usage feel: Neutral and straightforward

Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.

More ways to use create

“The company was created 25 years ago.”verb

Common Patterns and Combinations

How this word naturally appears with others.

helped create

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Word Family

Related forms, grouped by how they connect.

Word family

Words built from the same root.

creatornounPerson or profession
Terms referring to the Judeo-Christian God.
creativeadjectiveDerived adjective
Having the ability or power to create.
creativelyadverbDerived adverb
In a creative manner.

Compound terms

Established multiword terms.

create from raw materialverbCompound term
Make from scratch.
create by mental actverbCompound term
Create mentally and abstractly rather than with one's hands.
create from raw stuffverbCompound term
Make from scratch.
create mentallyverbCompound term
Create mentally and abstractly rather than with one's hands.
create verballyverbCompound term
Create with or from words.
creating by mental actsnounCompound term
The act of creating something by thinking.

Related words

Connected by subject or meaning, not by word formation.

creativitynounRelated term
The ability to create.
creative thinkingnounRelated term
The ability to create.

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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.