optimization
noun
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Optimization started its gradual perfection in mid-19th-century English, when it was derived from optimize, a word first used in the early part of that same century with the meaning "to make the best or most of." In basic applications, optimization refers to the act or process of making something as good as it can be. In the 21st century, it has seen much use in technical contexts having to do with attaining the best possible functionality, as in "network optimization" and "search engine optimization" (SEO). Like the words optimum and optimism (which refer, respectively, to the amount or degree of something that is best or most effective, and to a feeling or belief that good things will happen in the future), optimize and optimization derive from Latin optimus, meaning "best."
Examples of optimization in a Sentence
Cathy Hackl, Forbes, 23 Mar. 2025
The awards highlight measurable impacts AI delivers in various business operations, including marketing, customer experience, product development and supply chain optimization.
—Thomas G. Moukawsher, Newsweek, 20 Mar. 2025
On the demand side, smart appliances, buildings, and meters, coupled with time-of-day tariffs, can enable better demand optimization.
—Radhika Kak, Independent Researcher At Harvard Business School and Varad Pande, Partner At Bcg, CNBC, 20 Mar. 2025
Selling, general, and administrative expenses were reduced to $26.5 million from $31.2 million, reflecting cost optimization initiatives.
—Quartz Intelligence Newsroom, Quartz, 19 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for optimization
Cite this Entry
“Optimization.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/optimization. Accessed 28 Mar. 2025.
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