# invest

Pronunciation: say "in-VEST" US/UK /ɪnˈvɛst/, AUS /ɪnˈvest/

## Verb

1. To commit money or capital in the hope of gaining a financial return.
   - Simple: To put money into something, hoping it will grow and earn more later.
   - _Many families invest in property to build long-term wealth._
   - _He invested heavily in the company before it went public._
2. To spend money, time, or energy on something, usually for a benefit or purpose.
   - Simple: To put money, time, or energy into something so it brings a benefit later.
   - _The team chose to invest in better tools to speed up the work._
   - _He invested years of effort in mastering the violin._
3. To put money into financial assets with the aim of earning a return.
   - Simple: To put money into things like stocks or property to earn more.
   - _He learned how to invest wisely after years of mistakes._
   - _Those who invest regularly tend to build wealth over time._
4. To formally grant someone power or authority.
   - Simple: To officially give someone power or authority.
   - _The constitution invests the president with command of the armed forces._
   - _Parliament moved to invest the council with new authority._
5. To install someone in an office through a formal ceremony.
   - Simple: To place someone into an office in a formal ceremony.
   - _The university invested its new chancellor in a grand ceremony._
   - _Officials will invest the new abbot before the assembled monks._
6. To place power or authority officially in someone's hands, as by law, charter, or ceremony.
   - Simple: To formally hand over power or authority to someone.
   - _The charter invests considerable authority in the board of trustees._
   - _They voted to invest sweeping powers in the emergency office._
7. To become deeply involved in something or form a strong emotional attachment to it.
   - Simple: To care deeply about something and feel connected to it.
   - _Fans who invest emotionally in a show feel real loss when it ends._
   - _She invested deeply in her community over the years._
8. To surround something completely, wrapping or covering it on every side.
   - Simple: To wrap or cover something completely, all the way around.
   - _A dense mist invested the harbor, hiding the ships from view._
   - _Clouds invest the summit each evening, covering it completely._
9. To surround a fortified place with troops in order to besiege it.
   - Simple: To surround a town or fort with soldiers to attack it.
   - _The general planned to invest the fortress and cut off its supplies._
   - _Enemy forces invested the port city throughout the long campaign._
10. To surround, accompany, or attend someone or something.
   - Simple: To surround someone, or go along with them as company.
   - _Courtiers invested the monarch during every public appearance._
   - _An air of mystery seemed to invest the old house._
13. To formally inaugurate the Prime Minister of Spain following a successful parliamentary vote. *(dialectal, Spanish)*
   - Simple: To officially make someone Prime Minister of Spain after parliament votes yes.
   - _The Congress of Deputies moved to invest the candidate as prime minister._
   - _He was finally invested after months of failed negotiations._
14. To prepare a wax model for casting by surrounding it with an investment mold of silica and plaster.
   - Simple: To surround a wax model with a special plaster mix to get it ready for metal casting.
   - _Before casting, the artisan must invest the wax pattern in a heat-resistant mold._
   - _They invested the sprued wax tree and placed it in the kiln._

## Noun

12. A designated area of disturbed weather monitored for possible tropical cyclone development.
   - Simple: An area of stormy weather that experts watch to see if it might become a tropical storm.
   - _The hurricane center labeled the system an invest and began tracking it closely._
   - _Several invests formed in the Atlantic during the busy season._

## Verb

11. To clothe or wrap someone in garments. *(dated)*
   - Simple: To dress someone in clothing, or wrap them in it.
   - _Attendants invested the queen in her coronation gown._
   - _They would invest the newborn in fine linen._
15. To dress oneself by putting on clothing. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: To dress yourself by putting clothes on.

## Origin

**Meanings 1–11, 13–15** — Borrowed from Middle French "investir" or Medieval Latin "investire," from Latin "investio" ("to clothe, cover"), formed from "in-" ("in, on") plus "vestio" ("to clothe, dress"), from "vestis" ("clothing"). The sense of spending money probably came via Italian "investire," of the same root.
**Meaning 12** — Formed by shortening the word "investigate."

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/invest (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).