comprehend

verb

com·​pre·​hend ˌkäm-pri-ˈhend How to pronounce comprehend (audio)
-prē-
comprehended; comprehending; comprehends

transitive verb

1
: to grasp the nature, significance, or meaning of
unable to comprehend what has happened
2
: to contain or hold within a total scope, significance, or amount
… philosophy's scope comprehends the truth of everything which man may understand …Henry Osborn Taylor
3
: to include by construction or implication
Does not prudence comprehend all the virtues?Thomas B. Silver
Our civilization comprehends great variety and complexity …Perry Meisel
comprehendible adjective

Did you know?

To comprehend is to mentally grasp something's complete nature or meaning. Comprehend is thus often a bit stronger than understand: for example, you may understand the instructions in a handbook without completely comprehending their purpose. Comprehend's second meaning is much less common. Using that sense of the word, we could say that good manners comprehends (that is, includes) more than simple table etiquette, for example, or that true courage comprehends more than just physical showing off. And something comprehensive includes a great deal: so a comprehensive exam, for instance, includes all the material that was studied in the course.

Choose the Right Synonym for comprehend

understand, comprehend, appreciate mean to have a clear or complete idea of.

understand and comprehend are very often interchangeable.

understand may, however, stress the fact of having attained a firm mental grasp of something.

orders that were fully understood and promptly obeyed

comprehend may stress the process of coming to grips with something intellectually.

I have trouble comprehending your reasons for doing this

appreciate implies a just evaluation or judgment of a thing's value or nature.

failed to appreciate the risks involved

include, comprehend, embrace, involve mean to contain within as part of the whole.

include suggests the containment of something as a constituent, component, or subordinate part of a larger whole.

the price of dinner includes dessert

comprehend implies that something comes within the scope of a statement or definition.

his system comprehends all history

embrace implies a gathering of separate items within a whole.

her faith embraces both Christian and non-Christian beliefs

involve suggests inclusion by virtue of the nature of the whole, whether by being its natural or inevitable consequence.

the new job involves a lot of detail

Examples of comprehend in a Sentence

the age at which children can comprehend the difference between right and wrong it took me a while to comprehend algebra
Recent Examples on the Web Having ingested an internet’s worth of information, self-training AI models might bring out genuinely important patterns and ideas that are already embedded in their training data but that humans cannot elicit or fully comprehend. Matteo Wong, The Atlantic, 16 Feb. 2024 The adoption of this model—at every level of a firm—is difficult for many multinational companies to comprehend or even afford. Dean Debiase, Forbes, 2 Mar. 2024 Oliver showed a clip of Alabama Senator Tommy Tuberville seeming to comprehend the problems with these positions in real time. Jon Blistein, Rolling Stone, 26 Feb. 2024 The ability to read and comprehend what’s read is the key to all other learning, either formal or personal, and the students in California’s schools are not doing well. Dan Walters, The Mercury News, 16 Feb. 2024 The result could be a sort of unintelligible intelligence: models that are smart, or at least capable, in ways humans cannot readily comprehend. Matteo Wong, The Atlantic, 16 Feb. 2024 Our governor advocates a land value tax system, which is neither commonly used, transparent, or easy to comprehend but is endorsed by ivory tower economists. Lisa Frizzell, The Denver Post, 1 Feb. 2024 However, financially savvy organizations comprehend that CapEx budgeting is a strategic process that can propel their businesses forward. Howard Chi, Forbes, 21 Feb. 2024 Enduring affection for the former because of his imperfections is difficult to comprehend; enduring affection for the latter despite his imperfections is far more sensible. Neal B. Freeman, National Review, 20 Feb. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'comprehend.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Anglo-French comprendre, comprehendre, from Latin comprehendere, from com- + prehendere to grasp — more at get

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of comprehend was in the 14th century

Dictionary Entries Near comprehend

Cite this Entry

“Comprehend.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/comprehend. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

comprehend

verb
com·​pre·​hend ˌkäm-pri-ˈhend How to pronounce comprehend (audio)
1
: to grasp the meaning of : understand
2
comprehendible adjective
comprehensibility
-ˌhen(t)-sə-ˈbil-ət-ē
noun
comprehensible
-ˈhen(t)-sə-bəl
adjective
comprehensibly
-ˈhen(t)-sə-blē
adverb

More from Merriam-Webster on comprehend

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