comprehend

[kom-pri-hend]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR comprehend ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used with object)

to understand the nature or meaning of; grasp with the mind; perceive: He did not comprehend the significance of the ambassador's remark.

to take in or embrace; include; comprise: The course will comprehend all facets of Japanese culture.

Origin of comprehend

1350–1400; Middle English comprehenden < Latin comprehendere, equivalent to com- com- + prehendere to grasp; see prehensile

Related formscom·pre·hend·er, nouncom·pre·hend·ing·ly, adverbnon·com·pre·hend·ing, adjectivenon·com·pre·hend·ing·ly, adverbpre·com·pre·hend, verb (used with object)self-com·pre·hend·ing, adjectiveun·com·pre·hend·ed, adjectiveun·com·pre·hend·ing, adjectiveun·com·pre·hend·ing·ly, adverbwell-com·pre·hend·ed, adjective

Can be confusedapprehend comprehend

Synonyms for comprehend

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR comprehend ON THESAURUS.COM

1. See know¹. 2. See include.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for comprehend

envision, assimilate, appreciate, fathom, grasp, discern, embody, embrace, tumble, apprehend, conceive, dig, perceive, catch, see, read, know, have, savvy, envisage

Examples from the Web for comprehend

Contemporary Examples of comprehend

White rappers are always difficult to comprehend, difficult to deal with.
The Cultural Crimes of Iggy Azalea
Amy Zimmerman
December 29, 2014
It is very difficult to sit by helplessly while a friend is imprisoned for a crime that is too implausible to comprehend.
Behind Bars for the Holidays: 11 Political Prisoners We Want to See Free In 2015
Movements.Org
December 25, 2014
I could not comprehend the fact that Kristen and Lorne and Bill and all these people are singing “Happy Birthday” to me.
How Aidy Bryant Stealthily Became Your Favorite ‘Saturday Night Live’ Star
Kevin Fallon
October 31, 2014
Indeed, when you read it, you comprehend how, almost inevitably, his oratorical gifts eclipsed his skill as a writer.
Martin Luther King’s Nobel Speech Is an Often Ignored Masterpiece
Malcolm Jones
October 16, 2014
Their stories were told again and again in an attempt to assimilate the tragedy, to comprehend the incomprehensible.
The Resilient City: New York After 9/11
John Avlon
September 11, 2014

Historical Examples of comprehend

She did not seem to hear at first, nor to comprehend when she went back over his words.
The Spenders
Harry Leon Wilson
But her new theory of acceptance did not comprehend everything.
K
Mary Roberts Rinehart
But we must not expect with our finite mind to comprehend the infinite God.
An Explanation of Luther's Small Catechism
Joseph Stump
She did not comprehend that Martin definitely did not want it changed.
Dust
Mr. and Mrs. Haldeman-Julius
Any thing like a general argument Mr. Hardcastle could not comprehend.
Tales And Novels, Volume 4 (of 10)
Maria Edgeworth

British Dictionary definitions for comprehend

comprehend

verb

to perceive or understand

(tr) to comprise or embrace; include

Word Origin for comprehend

C14: from Latin comprehendere, from prehendere to seize

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for comprehend

mid-14c., "to understand," from Latin comprehendere "to take together, to unite; include; seize" (of catching fire or the arrest of criminals); also "to comprehend, perceive" (to seize or take in the mind), from com- "completely" (see com-) + prehendere "to catch hold of, seize" (see prehensile). Related: Comprehended; comprehending.