contemplate
verb (used with object)
to look at or view with continued attention; observe or study thoughtfully.
have been contemplating
-
present perfect progressiveof contemplate.present perfect progressive
Used to describe an action that began in the past, has continued continuously, and is still in progress.
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.
Meanwhile, L.A. city officials have been contemplating their own pullout from the agency.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 23, 2026
For more than 30 years, the Army Corps and its partners have been contemplating and experimenting with different kinds of barriers to keep invasive carp out of Lake Michigan.
From Salon ● Jun. 13, 2023
His GCSEs done, a long summer ahead of him, he should have been contemplating how best to spend his holidays, his whole adult life ahead of him.
From BBC ● Jul. 22, 2022
Short on ventilators, and with hospitals in Houston no longer able to take their most critically ill patients, officials have been contemplating the unthinkable: how to ration care.
From Seattle Times ● Aug. 21, 2021
I have been contemplating this thing for years.
From Leaves in the Wind by A. G. (Alfred George) Gardiner
