Invent-Discover | Commonly Confused Words

Invent

/ɪnˈvent/

To create something new, usually by using imagination or solving a problem.

I at first believed that you had simply invented the story.Lesson No5: The Rich Invent Money.The things you think of- and invent.'

/dɪsˈkʌvə/

To find out something previously unknown or unseen

We can discover the truth.Dobbin discovered that Jos and Becky were in Brussels.They had their own ways of discovering innocence or guilt.

An invention is something new that has never existed before, created from imagination or ingenuity.
A discovery is something that has always existed but was unknown to humans until it was found.
Remember, invent has the letter v, like create, which you do from scratch.
Discover contains cover, as in uncover something that is already there.
Invention often involves patents and new technology, while discovery is more about finding new knowledge or phenomena.