rumination
the act of pondering or musing on something: Understanding little of what was happening, I was semiconsciously storing away experiences, impressions, and ideas for later rumination.
something written or spoken that expresses such pondering or musing: Her blog posts contain notes of spirituality, ruminations on the meaning of experience, and glimpses of her multifaceted life.
Psychology. excessive, repetitive thinking focused on the same, usually negative, idea or theme: characteristic of some obsessive-compulsive and anxiety disorders.
the act or process of chewing the cud, as cows, deer, and some other animals do: Rumination helps cows efficiently turn grass, corn, and other feed into nutrient-dense milk.
Origin of rumination
1Other words from rumination
- non·ru·mi·na·tion, noun
Words Nearby rumination
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use rumination in a sentence
The rumination has centered around the systems and the institutions that perpetuated this treatment but, at least as I’ve found—and I’d venture many have as well—it’s also very personal.
The implausible realignment of two stars after more than a decade and a half might supercharge such ruminations.
Bennifer 2.0 Got You Pining For Your Ex? Therapists Say Forget It | Belinda Luscombe | June 21, 2021 | TimeIn addition to garden-variety deep thoughts, his movies are also laced with ruminations on where Germany has been, and where it’s headed.
In the Noirish Modern Fairytale Undine, a Mermaid and a Man Find Happiness—for Now | Stephanie Zacharek | May 28, 2021 | TimeOther studies have shown that rumination perpetuates distress and aggression caused in response to insults and threats to one’s self-esteem.
Oftentimes, this realization itself introduces enough mental distance from the cycle of rumination to break it, and allow you to move on.
A Quiet Path Out of the Coronavirus Shadow - Issue 98: Mind | Clayton Dalton | March 31, 2021 | Nautilus
How else to explain the popularity of a novel so free of plot, so obsessed with existential rumination and recondite philosophy?
American Dreams: Saul Bellow’s Masterpiece of Lamentation | Nathaniel Rich | July 27, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTWhat is it about all the rumination, all the anxiety that makes it so hard to sort of stand up for yourself, to yourself?
A Q&A with Scott Stossel, Author of ‘My Age of Anxiety: Fear, Hope, Dread, and the Search for Peace of Mind’ | Jesse Singal | February 20, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTThe images feel like a yearbook of sorts, a rumination on the decade, and on three girls growing up.
Craig McDean’s Fashion Muses: Amber Valletta, Kate Moss, and More | Isabel Wilkinson | October 22, 2013 | THE DAILY BEASTIn her hands, celluloid comes off as a medium that allows for old-fashioned rumination, with some of the slowness of oil paint.
Tacita Dean’s ‘Five Americans’ Captures a Quiet Brilliance | Blake Gopnik | May 7, 2012 | THE DAILY BEASTPublished in 2006, the novel is violent and spooky, a rumination on madness and creativity.
Remedial Reader: The Essential Stephen King Back List | Jessica Ferri | April 25, 2012 | THE DAILY BEASTLady Hartledon had dismissed her maid, and stood leaning against the arm of the sofa, indulging in bitter rumination.
Elster's Folly | Mrs. Henry WoodAt this a light came into his face, and after some seconds of rumination he despatched Nance upon an errand.
The Works of Robert Louis Stevenson, Volume XXI | Robert Louis StevensonHe sat looking surly and gloomy, buried in rumination, and by-and-by rose and left the room.
Trevlyn Hold | Mrs. Henry WoodHe kept sighing and wrinkling his brows, as though in deep rumination on a matter far removed from the stumpage question.
The Skipper and the Skipped | Holman DayThen he wrenched off a huge chew of tobacco whose rumination might check his impulse toward tempestuous language.
The Skipper and the Skipped | Holman Day
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