Figuring

Part of speech: verb

Pronunciation: /ˈfɪɡ.ə.ɹɪŋ/

Definitions

1. The activity of reaching an understanding or solution through analysis or thought
2. The act of determining or deducing an understanding through conceptualization or reasoning processes; the engagement in cognitive activities aimed at solving an issue or formulating an idea; the method of analyzing information to achieve clarity or form decisions about a situation
3. The process of analyzing information to reach a conclusion or solve a problem ; creating or imagining a concept or mental image in the mind

Etymology: The verb "figure" has a surprisingly physical starting point: Latin "fingere" meant to form or shape something with the hands, as a potter shapes clay. Its noun derivative "figura" carried the sense of a shape or outline, and that is where the English word begins. From Old French "figure," English borrowed the word in the Middle English period with its sense of an outward form or image. The mental sense of working something out grew from the older idea of shaping or arranging. To figure something out is, in a sense, to give it a definite form you can grasp, much as a sculptor gives a lump of clay a recognizable shape. The Latin "figura" also gave English a doublet, "figure" and "figura," which shows the word entering English through two routes at different times.

Synonyms: calculating, determining, solving, deciphering, interpreting