cognitive
Americanadjective
-
of or relating to cognition; concerned with the act or process of knowing, perceiving, etc. .
cognitive development;
cognitive functioning.
-
of or relating to the mental processes of perception, memory, judgment, and reasoning, as contrasted with emotional and volitional processes.
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of cognitive
First recorded in 1580–90; from Medieval Latin cognitīvus, equivalent to Latin cognit(us) “learned, known” ( see cognition) + -īvus -ive
Explanation
If it's related to thinking, it's considered cognitive. Anxious parents might defend using flashcards with toddlers as "nurturing their cognitive development." The adjective, cognitive, comes from the Latin cognoscere "to get to know" and refers to the ability of the brain to think and reason as opposed to feel. A child's cognitive development is the growth in his or her ability to think and solve problems. Many English words that involve knowing and knowledge have cogn- in them such as cognizant "aware of" and recognize "to know someone in the present because you knew them from the past."
Vocabulary lists containing cognitive
Vocabulary from the Introduction to "Reality is Broken" by Jane McGonigal
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In the Know: Cogn, Conn
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Vocabulary from "There Will Never Be an Age of Artificial Intimacy," by Sherry Turkle
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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.
These changes are associated with weaker memory consolidation, declining cognitive abilities, and Alzheimer's disease.
From Science Daily ● Nov. 5, 2026
Insurance companies generally require you to disclose anything that impacts your “mental, physical or cognitive state” when signing up for automobile insurance.
From MarketWatch ● Nov. 4, 2026
A brain tumor, depending on its location, type and stage, could impair your cognitive functioning and spatial awareness, which could affect your ability to drive.
From MarketWatch ● Nov. 4, 2026
Other cognitive functions, including memory, reasoning and mental processing speed, also contributed to reading development, although they played more supporting roles.
From Science Daily ● Nov. 3, 2026
But until very recently, we didn’t have proof of music’s extensive cognitive benefits.
From "Music and the Child" by Natalie Sarrazin
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
