memorize
verb (used with object)
to commit to memory; learn by heart.
were memorizing
-
past progressiveof memorize.past progressive
Used to describe an ongoing action or continuous state that was happening at a specific time in the past.
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.
“If we were memorizing a poem, we’d try to memorize as best as we possibly could.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 10, 2024
One possible explanation for these improvements is that humans were memorizing new play sequences of moves.
From Scientific American ● Mar. 13, 2023
People gathered to look at the photos, study them, read them carefully, as if they were memorizing their details.
From Slate ● Sep. 7, 2021
“Now we were memorizing poems written two thousand years ago. That was just mind-blowing to me, coming from an American education, where two hundred years is old.”
From The New Yorker ● Jan. 6, 2020
Max watched Josie stare off into the maze of server cabinets as if she were memorizing all its twists and turns.
From "The School for Whatnots" by Margaret Peterson Haddix
