Figure out

Figure out

The phrasal verb “figure out” is one you need to know and use, because it’s extremely common in English. It has two meanings. Number one: to understand how to solve a problem or to find a solution. And number two: to understand something that’s confusing.

I know it sounds like those are the same—but they’re not quite the same. So don’t worry. In this episode, I’ll show you exactly how to use “figure out.”

Here’s a tip before we start. After “figure out,” we typically use words like who, what, when, where, or why. So listen for that in the examples.

Find the solution to a problem

We’re going to start with the first meaning. We use “figure out” when we’re working to solve a problem or find an answer. We use “figure out” when we have a problem, but we don’t know what the answer is. “Figure out” is not about fixing the problem. “Figure out” is not about taking the action. “Figure out” is about discovering the solution. First you figure out the solution, then you take the action.

I’ll start with an example close to home. I used to live in a condominium in Chicago, a cold-weather place. And there was a part of my apartment that was just always cold. I could not figure out why that part of the apartment was so cold. I had the heat on. I didn’t understand why the heat didn’t arrive to that part of the apartment. I had a problem and I could not solve it. I didn’t know the answer. I was clueless! Was it the windows? Was it the furnace? I could not figure it out. I just didn’t know.

So I hired an engineer to come to my house. And I told him, “I need some help figuring this out. I don’t know why this area is always cold in the winter.” And you know what? The engineer figured it out. It wasn’t the furnace. It wasn’t the windows. The engineer discovered that the insulation was poor in that part of the apartment. The engineer figured out why that part of my apartment was cold. He didn’t fix the problem! He didn’t fix the insulation. But he discovered the answer. He discovered the solution. He figured it out.

Now imagine that a company is losing its younger customers to competitors. So if this company is going to stay in business, they need to figure out how to attract younger customers. Again here, “figure out” means coming up with a plan to solve the problem. After the company has a plan, it needs to do the work to attract young customers. But the first thing is to figure out what to do. The first thing is to solve the problem.

One last example: Imagine your car needs service and you won’t have a vehicle for three days, while it’s being repaired. You need to figure out how you’re going to get to work during those three days.

What is your answer going to be? Will you ask a coworker to drive you? Will you take an Uber? Does a bus or train go by your workplace? Can you borrow a car from a friend or family member? I don’t know what the answer is going to be. But you have to figure it out. You have to solve the problem, find the solution…and then you have to do it.

In each of these situations, “figure out” is all about finding a solution to a specific issue.

Understand something complicated

The second way to use “figure out” is similar. Here, “figure out” means to understand something that’s confusing or complicated.

Think about a family with two kids, and both kids just advanced to a new grade level, so they’re at different schools for the new year. The schools start at different times; mom and dad both have to work, too.

What do the parents need to do before the school year starts? They have to figure a lot of things out. The parents need to figure out when to set the alarm clocks, so that everyone is awake on time. They have to figure out when to leave the house to get everyone to school and work on time. Then they have to figure out where to drop the kids off after arriving at school. There’s a lot to figure out when kids advance to a new grade level and a new school.

Now imagine the school year is over, and those parents want to plan a party for the other children in their kids’ classes. They’ll need to figure out who will bring the food. They’ll want to figure out where to have the party. And they’ll want to figure out when to have it, too. These are not enormous problems, but they are somewhat complicated. They require some thought.

So notice, in this case “figure out” is not about finding a solution to a problem; it’s about understanding a situation or understanding how you’ll do something.

Are you good at doing household repairs? I’m not. I know better than to try! But I want you to imagine doing something difficult around the house—whether it’s installing a new ceiling fan or fixing a leaky faucet.

You might see a YouTube video or you might have a set of written instructions. But even after watching the video, and even after reading the instructions multiple times, you might say, “I still can’t figure out how to do this!”

In this case, “figure out” means to understand the complicated process. The instructions might have confusing pictures, they might use unfamiliar vocabulary, or the instructions just might not be correct. That happens too, right? So, you’re left staring at the page, holding pieces in your hand, trying to figure out how to replace that faucet or how to install that ceiling fan.

‘Figure out’ a person

This is less common, but you can also use “figure out” when you’re trying to understand a person’s behavior or personality. People can sometimes be hard to figure out—hard to understand!

For example, if a new coworker acts unpredictably, you might say, “I can’t figure out why he’s acting that way.” Or simply, “I can’t figure him out.” This means you’re struggling to understand his behavior or personality. You can also say, “I can’t figure out what he wants.” That means, you listen to what he says, you observe what he does, and you still don’t understand what he wants, why he behaves the way he does. You can’t figure him out.

‘Figure it out’ and ‘figure this out’

Did you hear that? “I can’t figure him out.” You may have noticed that we sometimes put an object in between “figure” and “out.” If you’re trying to solve a problem, you can say, “figure it out.” Part of my apartment was cold in the winter. I couldn’t figure it out. But an engineer did; he did figure it out.

You can also say, “figure this out” or “figure that out.” If your car is scheduled to be repaired next week and you need a way to get to and from work, you can say, “I’ll figure that out later.” But if you’re staring at the instructions to install a ceiling fan, you can say, “I can’t figure this out.”

‘Figure out if’

The examples you’ve heard so far have used “figure out” plus a word like who, what, when, where, or why. You can also use figure out with the word “if.” And this is when you have a yes/no type of doubt. For example, “We should figure out if we can make this recipe gluten free.”

This is a yes/no question. Either you can do it, or you cannot do it. We should figure out if we can make the recipe gluten free.

Pronunciation tips

If you’ve been listening closely, you probably heard that I pronounce “figure out” like it’s one word, the “r” sound at the end of “figure” leads right into to “ou” sound in out. “Figure out.” The two words blend together so that they sound like one. In fact, it sounds strange to say them as two distinct words: “figure out.” Even saying it now, it’s hard for me to put the space between the two words.

The same thing goes when we place an object in between. “Figure it out” becomes “figure it out.” Really fast like that. You might hear someone say, “Can you figure it out for me?” Like that.

So there you go: now you understand “figure out.” It can mean to find the answer to a hard problem or to understand something complicated. We often use words like who, what, when, where, why, or if after “figure out.”