What is the difference in meaning or connotation of 'discovery' as compared to 'invention'? I think invention is the result of targeted search and discovery may be accidental.
One definition in The Oxford English Dictionary, edition 1971, of 'invention' is:
"I,1. The action of coming upon or finding; the action of finding out; discovery (whether accidental, or the result of search and effort)".
The OED has labelled this definition as 'obsolete and archaic'. Still, I wondered whether I might use 'discovery' in translating from Dutch to English in a text where 'invention' had already been used in abundance, just for the sake of variety.