calculate

English

Papers and calculators are common tools for calculation.

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin calculātus, perfect passive participle of calculō (“to reckon, compute, calculate”, originally by means of pebbles) (see -ate (verb-forming suffix)), from calculus (“a pebble”), further from calx (“limestone”, calc- in compounds) +‎ -ulus (forms diminutives).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈkælkjʊleɪt/, /ˈkælkjəleɪt/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

• Hyphenation: cal‧cu‧late

Verb

calculate (third-person singular simple present calculates, present participle calculating, simple past and past participle calculated)

1. (transitive, mathematics) To determine the value of something or the solution to something by a mathematical process.

   Calculate the square root of 3 to 10 decimal places.

2. (intransitive, mathematics) To determine values or solutions by a mathematical process; reckon.
3. (intransitive, US, dialect) To plan; to expect; to think.
   • 1913, Joseph C[rosby] Lincoln, chapter I, in Mr. Pratt’s Patients, New York, N.Y.; London: D[aniel] Appleton and Company, →OCLC:

     I stumbled along through the young pines and huckleberry bushes. Pretty soon I struck into a sort of path that, I cal’lated, might lead to the road I was hunting for. It twisted and turned, and, the first thing I knew, made a sudden bend around a bunch of bayberry scrub and opened out into a big clear space like a lawn.

4. To ascertain or predict by mathematical or astrological computations the time, circumstances, or other conditions of; to forecast or compute the character or consequences of.

   to calculate or cast one’s nativity

   • 1591 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Second Part of Henry the Sixt, […]”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies. […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act IV, scene i]:

     A cunning man did calculate my birth.

5. To adjust for purpose; to adapt by forethought or calculation; to fit or prepare by the adaptation of means to an end.

   to calculate a system of laws for the government and protection of a free people

   • 1671, John Tillotson, “Sermon IV. The Advantages of Religion to Particular Persons. Psalm XIX. 11.”, in The Works of the Most Reverend Dr. John Tillotson, Late Lord Archbishop of Canterbury: […], 8th edition, London: […] T. Goodwin, B[enjamin] Tooke, and J. Pemberton, […]; J. Round […], and J[acob] Tonson] […], published 1720, →OCLC:

     [Religion] is […] calculated for our benefit.

6. (chess) To imagine sequences of potential moves and responses without actually moving the pieces.

Conjugation

Conjugation of calculate

infinitive	(to) calculate
	present tense	past tense
1st-person singular	calculate	calculated
2nd-person singular	calculate, calculatest†	calculated, calculatedst†
3rd-person singular	calculates, calculateth†	calculated
plural	calculate
subjunctive	calculate	calculated
imperative	calculate	—
participles	calculating	calculated

^† Archaic or obsolete.

Synonyms

• (determine value of or solution to): compute, reckon (old), work out
• (determine values or solutions): compute, reckon (old)

Derived terms

• backcalculate
• calculant
• calculatable
• calculated
• calculate out
• calculating
• calculative
• calculatory
• miscalculate
• outcalculate
• overcalculate
• precalculate
• recalculate
• retrocalculate
• uncalculatable
• undercalculate

Related terms

• calculation
• calculus
• calculator
• incalculable

Translations

(transitive) to determine the value or solution of sth.

• Albanian: llogarit (sq)
• Arabic: حَسَبَ (ḥasaba)
• Assyrian Neo-Aramaic: ܚܲܫܒܸܢ (ḳāšbin), ܚܵܫܹܒ݂ (ḳašew)
• Azerbaijani: hesablamaq (az)
• Belarusian: вылі́чваць impf (vylíčvacʹ), выліча́ць impf (vyličácʹ), вы́лічыць pf (výličycʹ), вырахо́ўваць impf (vyraxóŭvacʹ), вы́рахаваць pf (výraxavacʹ)
• Bulgarian: изчисля́вам (bg) (izčisljávam), пресмятам (bg) (presmjatam)
• Burmese: တွက် (my) (twak), ခန့်တွက် (my) (hkan.twak)
• Catalan: calcular (ca) (used in both standard Catalan and Algherese)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 計算 / 计算 (zh) (jìsuàn), 算 (zh) (suàn), 計 / 计 (zh) (jì)

• Czech: počítat (cs) impf, spočítat (cs) pf, vypočítat (cs) pf
• Danish: beregne (da), kalkulere
• Dutch: berekenen (nl), uitwerken (nl), calculeren (nl)
• Esperanto: kalkuli
• Estonian: arvutama (et)
• Faroese: rokna (fo)
• Finnish: laskea (fi)
• French: calculer (fr)
• Georgian: გამოთვლა (gamotvla)
• German: kalkulieren (de), berechnen (de), ausrechnen (de)
• Greek: υπολογίζω (el) (ypologízo), λογαριάζω (el) (logariázo)

  Ancient: λογίζομαι (logízomai)

• Guaraní: jepapa
• Hebrew: חישב \ חִשֵּׁב (khishév)
• Hindi: गणना करना (gaṇnā karnā), हिसाब रखना (hisāb rakhnā), हिसाब करना (hisāb karnā), हिसाब लगाना (hisāb lagānā)
• Hungarian: kiszámít (hu)
• Icelandic: reikna (is)
• Ido: kalkular (io)
• Italian: calcolare (it)
• Japanese: 計算する (ja) (けいさんする, keisan suru)
• Kashubian: rechòwac
• Kazakh: есептеу (esepteu)
• Khmer: គណនា (km) (kĕəʼnaʼniə), គន់ (km) (kŭən), កាញ់ (km) (kañ)
• Korean: 정산하다 (jeongsanhada), 계산하다 (ko) (gyesanhada)
• Kyrgyz: эсептөө (ky) (eseptöö)
• Lao: ຄຳນວນ (lo) (kham nūan)
• Latin: ratiocinor, calculo
• Latvian: aprēķināt (lv)
• Lithuanian: apskaičiuoti
• Macedonian: пресметува impf (presmetuva), пресмета pf (presmeta), калкулира impf or pf (kalkulira)
• Malay: mengira
• Maori: tatau, tātai
• Mongolian: бодох (mn) (bodox), тооцоолох (toocoolox), тооцох (mn) (toocox)
• Norman: caltchuler
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: beregne (no), kalkulere, regne ut

• Old Church Slavonic: почисти (počisti), ращисти (raštisti)
• Pashto: محاسبه کول (mahāsebakawᶕl)
• Persian: محاسبه کردن (fa) (mohâsebe kardan), حساب کردن (fa) (hesâb kardan), انگاردن (fa) (angārdan) (classic), اشماردن (ošmārdan)
• Polish: rachować (pl), wyliczać (pl) impf, kalkulować (pl) impf, policzyć (pl) impf, obliczać (pl) impf
• Portuguese: calcular (pt)
• Romanian: calcula (ro), socoti (ro)
• Russian: вычисля́ть (ru) impf (vyčisljátʹ), вы́числить (ru) pf (výčislitʹ), подсчи́тывать (ru) impf (podsčítyvatʹ), подсчита́ть (ru) pf (podsčitátʹ), рассчи́тывать (ru) impf (rassčítyvatʹ), рассчита́ть (ru) pf (rassčitátʹ), счита́ть (ru) impf (sčitátʹ), посчита́ть (ru) pf (posčitátʹ)
• Sardinian:

  Campidanese: calculai, carculai, calcurà

  Logudorese: calculare, carculare

• Sassarese: calcurà
• Scottish Gaelic: tomhais
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: калкули́рати impf (Croatian), калкулисати impf (Bosnian, Serbian), израчуна́вати impf, израчу̀нати pf

  Roman: kalkulírati (sh) impf (Croatian), kalkulisati (sh) impf (Bosnian, Serbian), izračunávati (sh) impf, izračùnati (sh) pf

• Slovak: kalkulovať impf, počítať (sk) impf
• Slovene: ocenjevati impf, oceniti pf
• Spanish: calcular (es)
• Swedish: beräkna (sv), räkna ut (sv), kalkylera (sv)
• Tagalog: tayahin, magtaya
• Tajik: ҳисоб кардан (hisob kardan), муҳосиба кардан (muhosiba kardan)
• Tatar: хисапларга (xisaplarga)
• Thai: คำนวณ (th) (kam-nuuan)
• Turkish: hesaplamak (tr)
• Turkmen: hasaplamak
• Ukrainian: обчи́слювати impf (občýsljuvaty), обчисля́ти impf (občysljáty), обчи́слити pf (občýslyty), вирахо́вувати impf (vyraxóvuvaty), ви́рахувати pf (výraxuvaty), вичи́слювати impf (vyčýsljuvaty), ви́числити pf (výčyslyty), вилі́чувати (uk) impf (vylíčuvaty), ви́лічити pf (výličyty)
• Urdu: شمار کرنا (śumār karnā), حساب لگانا (hisāb lagānā)
• Uyghur: ھېساب ئالماق (hësab almaq)
• Uzbek: hisoblamoq (uz)
• Vietnamese: tính toán (vi), tính (vi)

(intransitive) to determine values or solutions

• Arabic: حَسَبَ (ḥasaba)
• Assyrian Neo-Aramaic: ܚܲܫܒܸܢ (ḳāšbin), ܚܵܫܹܒ݂ (ḳašew)
• Burmese: တွက် (my) (twak)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 計算 / 计算 (zh) (jìsuàn)

• Dutch: rekenen (nl), uitwerken (nl)
• Esperanto: kalkuli
• Farefare: kɛkɛ
• Finnish: laskea (fi)
• French: calculer (fr)
• German: rechnen (de)
• Greek:

  Ancient: λογίζομαι (logízomai)

• Guaraní: jepapa
• Hungarian: számol (hu), számítást végez
• Italian: calcolare (it)
• Japanese: 計算する (ja) (けいさんする, keisan suru), 算定する (ja) (さんていする, santei suru), 算出する (ja) (さんしゅつする, sanshutsu suru), 見積もる (ja) (みつもる, mitsumoru)
• Korean: 계산하다 (ko) (gyesanhada)
• Latin: ratiocinor
• Malay: mengira
• Maori: tatau, tātai
• Norman: caltchuler
• Portuguese: calcular (pt)
• Romanian: calcula (ro)
• Sardinian:

  Campidanese: calculai, carculai

  Logudorese: calculare, carculare

• Sassarese: calcurà
• Sicilian: calcular
• Spanish: calcular (es)
• Swedish: räkna (sv) (count; do calculations in general), beräkna (sv), räkna ut (sv) (calculate a specific answer)

(intransitive) plan

• Czech: kalkulovat
• Dutch: plannen (nl), uitwerken (nl)
• Finnish: suunnitella (fi), laskelmoida
• German: kalkulieren (de), sich etwas ausrechnen
• Hungarian: kikalkulál (hu), kitervel (hu)
• Japanese: たくらむ (ja) (takuramu)
• Korean: 꾀하다 (ko) (kkoehada)
• Spanish: (transitive) calcular (es)
• Swedish: beräkna (sv), räkna ut (sv)

Further reading

• “calculate”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
• William Dwight Whitney, Benjamin E[li] Smith, editors (1911), “calculate”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., →OCLC.
• Douglas Harper (2001–2025) “calculate”, in Online Etymology Dictionary.

Latin

Verb

calculāte

1. second-person plural present active imperative of calculō
   1. "calculate ye, compute ye"
   2. (figuratively) "consider ye as, esteem ye"

Participle

calculāte

1. vocative masculine singular of calculātus

Spanish

Verb

calculate

1. second-person singular voseo imperative of calcular combined with te