contemplation
[kon-tuh m-pley-shuh n, -tem-]
- the act of contemplating; thoughtful observation.
- full or deep consideration; reflection: religious contemplation.
- purpose or intention.
- prospect or expectation.
Show More
Origin of contemplation
1175–1225; < Latin contemplātiōn- (stem of contemplātiō); see contemplate, -ion; replacing Middle English contemplaci(o)un < Anglo-French < Latin, as above
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Related Words
meditation, reflection, reverie, deliberation, study, intention, rumination, design, musing, ambition, consideration, plan, cogitation, purpose, observation, scrutiny, survey, examination, inspection, viewingExamples from the Web for contemplation
Contemporary Examples
Contemplation and meditation are not just for monks and hermits.
He went, and the experience “launched me into a lifelong passion for spirituality, meditation, and contemplation,” he said.
Landscapes of the Metropolis of Death is both a contemplation of these facts and a reflection upon living with them for decades.
“Concentration and contemplation are still on the surface,” he explains.
Birthdays can be moments of contemplation, reexamination, and reinvention.
Historical Examples
The truth could not be concealed, nor the contemplation of it avoided.
Fragments from The Journal of a Solitary ManNathaniel Hawthorne
Raising his eyes from a contemplation of the heels in front of him, he saw Belle Langdon.
ThoroughbredsW. A. Fraser
I wasn't so enamoured with the ancients as I thought I was; but I was enamoured with your contemplation of my pose.
Quaint CourtshipsVarious
The contemplation of the infirm and lonely steed overcame him.
The Secret AgentJoseph Conrad
A state of mind produced by contemplation of a neighbor's uneasiness.
The Devil's DictionaryAmbrose Bierce
contemplation
- thoughtful or long consideration or observation
- spiritual meditation esp (in Christian religious practice) concentration of the mind and soul upon GodCompare meditation
- purpose or intention
Show More
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 contemplation
n.
c.1200, "religious musing," from Old French contemplation or directly from Latin contemplationem (nominative contemplatio) "act of looking at," from contemplat-, past participle stem of contemplari "to gaze attentively, observe," originally "to mark out a space for observation" (as an augur does). From com-, intensive prefix (see com-), + templum "area for the taking of auguries" (see temple (n.1)).
Show More
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper