comprehension

American  

[kom-pri-hen-shuhn] / ˌkɒm prɪˈhɛn ʃən /

noun

• comprehensions
  plural

1. the act or process of comprehending.

2. the state of being comprehended.

3. perception or understanding.

   His comprehension of physics is amazing for a young student.

4. capacity of the mind to perceive and understand; power to grasp ideas; ability to know.

5. Logic. the connotation of a term.

6. inclusion.

7. comprehensiveness.

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comprehension British  

/ ˌkɒmprɪˈhɛnʃən /

noun

1. the act or capacity of understanding

2. the state of including or comprising something; comprehensiveness

3. education an exercise consisting of a previously unseen passage of text with related questions, designed to test a student's understanding esp of a foreign language

4. obsolete logic the attributes implied by a given concept or term; connotation

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• miscomprehension
  noun
• noncomprehension
  noun
• precomprehension
  noun
• supercomprehension
  noun
• uncomprehension
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• comprehensions
  plural

Etymology

Origin of comprehension

First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English, from Latin comprehēnsiōn-, stem of comprehēnsiō, from comprehēns(us) “understood” (past participle of comprehendere “to understand,” literally, “to seize together”; see comprehend) + -iō -ion

Explanation

The word comprehension means understanding. When you lack comprehension of a difficult word, you will likely need to look up its definition and usage in a cool, down-to-earth online dictionary! Comprehension actually comes from the Latin term, comprehensionem, which means "a seizing." When you have comprehension of a subject, you have seized information and incorporated it into your own knowledge. Any kind of mental grasping of an idea or a subject is a kind of comprehension. You might attempt comprehension of a curious situation, like the fact that your goofy roommate always manages to date models. Sometimes, such mysteries are beyond comprehension!

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

comprehension comprehensions

Tony tells her that he’s going to be a famous writer, before challenging her comprehension of a few five-dollar words.

From Salon ● Aug. 12, 2026

Sentencing him at Hull Crown Court, Judge Justice Hilliard told the former undertaker he had "caused anguish and pain on a scale beyond comprehension".

From BBC ● Jul. 31, 2026

And Mikhail Fiksel’s looping systems architecture and sound design, while beyond my technical comprehension, added to the unique magic of a score that is discovering itself in real time.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 15, 2026

The findings suggest that important cognitive abilities, including language comprehension and prediction, may not depend on conscious awareness.

From Science Daily ● Jun. 29, 2026

He did not respond but with a nod, signifying no steady purpose nor comprehension.

From "The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume II: The Kingdom on the Waves" by M.T. Anderson

He may also be rushing through the text and not monitoring his own comprehensions.

From Slate ● Jan. 7, 2021

Reed and Wooten will be tasked with improving hitters’ comprehensions of technology-driven approaches and overseeing new catcher Jonathan Lucroy’s resurgence.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 11, 2019

Events that bear a frightful import to the limited comprehensions of mortals, may nevertheless be fraught with inestimable blessings.

From Wild Western Scenes A Narrative of Adventures in the Western Wilderness, Wherein the Exploits of Daniel Boone, the Great American Pioneer are Particularly Described by J. B. (John Beauchamp) Jones

They are, in general, suitable to the ages and comprehensions of the hearers.

From The Sand-Hills of Jutland by Mrs. (Anna S.) Bushby

He is anxious to learn, and is very tractable in respect to minor matters; but we shall need almost infinite patience with him, for he comes very slowly to moral comprehensions.

From The Atlantic Monthly, Volume 17, No. 100, February, 1866 by Various

Related Words

• apprehension
• awareness