optimization
noun
Did you know?
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
Kansas City Star, 5 June 2024
Still, the information made public is likely to cause ripples across the search engine optimization (SEO), marketing, and publishing industries.
—Mia Sato, The Verge, 29 May 2024
There appears to have been a huge leak of documentation from Google’s Search division, giving search-engine optimization experts an unusual insight into how Google ranks its results, and seemingly contradicting statements that Googlers have made on the topic.
—David Meyer, Fortune, 29 May 2024
Global airlines are also finding endless operational use cases to leverage the power of AI optimization.
—Brian Tossan, Fortune, 9 May 2024
See all Example Sentences for optimization 
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'optimization.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near optimization
Cite this Entry
“Optimization.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/optimization. Accessed 12 Jun. 2024.
Copy Citation
Share