resolution

[ rez-uh-loo-shuhn ]

noun

1. a formal expression of opinion or intention made, usually after voting, by a formal organization, a legislature, a club, or other group. Compare concurrent resolution, joint resolution.
2. the act of resolving or determining upon an action, course of action, method, procedure, etc.
3. 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.

4. 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

5. the act or process of resolving or separating something into constituent or elementary parts.
6. the resulting state.
7. Optics. the act, process, or capability of distinguishing between two separate but adjacent objects or sources of light or between two nearly equal wavelengths. Compare resolving power.
8. a solution, accommodation, or settling of a problem, controversy, etc.
9. Music.
   1. the progression of a voice part or of the harmony as a whole from a dissonance to a consonance.
   2. the tone or chord to which a dissonance is resolved.
10. reduction to a simpler form; conversion.
11. Medicine/Medical. the reduction or disappearance of a swelling or inflammation without suppuration.
12. 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.

resolution

/ ˌrɛzəˈluːʃən /

noun

1. the act or an instance of resolving
2. the condition or quality of being resolute; firmness or determination
3. something resolved or determined; decision
4. a formal expression of opinion by a meeting, esp one agreed by a vote
5. a judicial decision on some matter; verdict; judgment
6. the act or process of separating something into its constituent parts or elements
7. med
   1. return from a pathological to a normal condition
   2. subsidence of the symptoms of a disease, esp the disappearance of inflammation without the formation of pus
8. music the process in harmony whereby a dissonant note or chord is followed by a consonant one
9. the ability of a television or film image to reproduce fine detail
10. physics another word for resolving power

Derived Forms

• ˌresoˈlutioner, noun

Other Words From

• nonres·o·lution noun
• preres·o·lution noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of resolution¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Latin resolūtiōn-, stem of resolūtiō “looseness, a release” equivalent to resolute + -ion

Example Sentences

"We will work to find solutions. I don’t think anything’s inevitable, we will work night and day to make sure we can get a positive resolution."

From BBC

O’Neill said she hoped there could be a “positive resolution”.

From BBC

Ms Baines said she "remains hopeful there is a positive resolution" but told the BBC that Thurrock's action would mean "other councils become embroiled" in paying for their financial failure.

From BBC

Lebanon’s government has called for a ceasefire based on the full implementation of UN Security Council resolution 1701, which ended the last war between Israel and Hezbollah in 2006.

From BBC

The resolution called for Lebanese territory south of the Litani to be free of any armed personnel or weapons other than those of the Lebanese state and a UN peacekeeping force.

From BBC

Related Words

• conclusion
• decision
• finding
• motion
• outcome
• proposal
• proposition
• recommendation
• settlement
• solution
• verdict