cognitive
Americanadjective
-
of or relating to cognition; concerned with the act or process of knowing, perceiving, etc. .
cognitive development;
cognitive functioning.
-
of or relating to the mental processes of perception, memory, judgment, and reasoning, as contrasted with emotional and volitional processes.
adjective
Other Word Forms
- cognitively adverb
- cognitivity noun
- noncognitive adjective
Etymology
Origin of cognitive
First recorded in 1580–90; from Medieval Latin cognitīvus, equivalent to Latin cognit(us) “learned, known” ( see cognition) + -īvus -ive
Explanation
If it's related to thinking, it's considered cognitive. Anxious parents might defend using flashcards with toddlers as "nurturing their cognitive development." The adjective, cognitive, comes from the Latin cognoscere "to get to know" and refers to the ability of the brain to think and reason as opposed to feel. A child's cognitive development is the growth in his or her ability to think and solve problems. Many English words that involve knowing and knowledge have cogn- in them such as cognizant "aware of" and recognize "to know someone in the present because you knew them from the past."
Vocabulary lists containing cognitive
In the Know: Cogn, Conn
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Vocabulary from the Introduction to "Reality is Broken" by Jane McGonigal
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Vocabulary from "There Will Never Be an Age of Artificial Intimacy," by Sherry Turkle
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
And speaking less could lead to a decline in the cognitive chess game that is conversation, especially for infants whose mothers are speaking to them less.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 25, 2026
Vivienne Ming is a theoretical neuroscientist, cognitive scientist and the author of “Robot-Proof: When Machines Have All The Answers, Build Better People.”
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 24, 2026
The resolution cited research indicating that children aged 8 to 11 who exceed screen-time guidelines are at higher risk for obesity and depressive symptoms and have scored lower on cognitive assessments.
From BBC • Apr. 22, 2026
Removing the cognitive strain of where food will come from also can reduce stigma and feelings of shame.
From Slate • Apr. 19, 2026
Even if they’re looking at the road, he’d found, their visual acuity was impaired by the cognitive demand of the phone.
From "A Deadly Wandering: A Mystery, a Landmark Investigation, and the Astonishing Science of Attention in the Digital Age" by Matt Richtel
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
