comprehend
Americanverb
-
to perceive or understand
-
(tr) to comprise or embrace; include
Usage
What are other ways to say comprehend? To comprehend something is to grasp it with the mind. How is comprehend different from know and understand? Learn more on Thesaurus.com.
Related Words
See include.
Other Word Forms
- comprehender noun
- comprehendingly adverb
- noncomprehending adjective
- noncomprehendingly adverb
- precomprehend verb (used with object)
- self-comprehending adjective
- uncomprehended adjective
- uncomprehending adjective
- uncomprehendingly adverb
- well-comprehended adjective
Etymology
Origin of comprehend
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English comprehenden, from Latin comprehendere, from com- com- + prehendere “to seize” ( prehension )
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.
This close-knit, historic market town struggled to comprehend events, and many of its residents will remember the sight of Lilia's tiny white coffin, adorned with butterflies, passing through its streets.
From BBC
Yet as commander in chief, wisely comprehending that no war to save the Union could be waged, much less won, exclusively by Republicans, Lincoln sought out Democrats to help battle secession.
I found one and tried to haul myself up, only now truly comprehending the size of these trees.
From Literature
“If there is a silver lining to this, the amount of support they’ve gotten is beyond my ability to comprehend. The families are so grateful.”
From Los Angeles Times
Even the person footing the bill couldn’t quite comprehend how fast it all came together.
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.
