comprehend
verb
transitive verb
Henry Osborn Taylor Thomas B. Silver Perry Meisel 
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.
Synonyms
- appreciate
- apprehend
- assimilate
- behold
- catch
- catch on (to)
- cognize
- compass
- conceive
- cotton (to or on to)
- decipher
- decode
- dig
- discern
- get
- grasp
- grok
- intuit
- know
- make
- make out
- perceive
- recognize
- register
- savvy
- see
- seize
- sense
- tumble (to)
- twig
- understand
Example Sentences
Time, 15 Sep. 2022 Before the 19-year-old could comprehend what had happened, an auger had severed his right arm. Emily Corwin, ProPublica, 23 Aug. 2022 It is said to have focused on the need to share scientific data faster and to translate the science the agency generates into practical policies that are easy to comprehend. Helen Branswell, STAT, 22 Aug. 2022 Even before the pandemic, the Philippines had among the world’s largest education gaps, with more than 90 percent of students unable to read and comprehend simple texts by age 10, according to the World Bank. Jason Gutierrez, New York Times, 22 Aug. 2022 Adele later told Oprah Winfrey during her CBS special that Angelo was just starting to comprehend his mother's fame. Lynsey Eidell, Peoplemag, 18 Aug. 2022 At the same time, there’s no doubt Web3 has applications that Hollywood needs to comprehend, if only to understand how the next generation of consumers hopes to be entertained and engaged. Cynthia Littleton, Variety, 18 Aug. 2022 Furiously typing away on their laptops while glancing at their phones and giving an acknowledging nod to their professor, these students want to see, hear and comprehend the world around them simultaneously. Irma Becerra, Forbes, 16 Aug. 2022 Marriott loved the marketing campaign’s results, even if its leaders didn’t fully comprehend how Ma generated them. Grady Mcgregor, Fortune, 29 Aug. 2022 See More Word History
Middle English, from Anglo-French comprendre, comprehendre, from Latin comprehendere, from com- + prehendere to grasp — more at get
14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Kids Definition
comprehend
verb
comprehend
verb
Synonyms & Similar Words
- understand
- decipher
- know
- grasp
- recognize
- see
- appreciate
- discern
- realize
- perceive
- conceive
- apprehend
- sense
- assimilate
- get
- intuit
- grok
- decode
- fathom
- make
- seize
- dig
- cognize
- behold
- register
- savvy
- make out
- twig
- catch
- digest
- absorb
- compass
- pick up on
- tumble (to)
- catch on (to)
- cotton (to or on to)
- penetrate
- take in
- pierce
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- miss
- misunderstand
- misinterpret
- misread
- misconstrue
- mistake
- misapprehend
- misconceive
- misperceive
Synonyms & Similar Words
- understand
- know
- grasp
- fathom
- appreciate
- apprehend
- perceive
- possess
- cognize
- savvy
- follow
- ken
- have
- catch on (to)
- pick up
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- misunderstand
- misinterpret
- misapprehend
- misconceive
- misperceive
- misknow
Synonyms & Similar Words
- encompass
- contain
- involve
- include
- carry
- entail
- embrace
- subsume
- number
- take in
- possess
- comprise
- receive
- have
- incorporate
- assimilate
- admit
- own
- compose
- integrate
- embody
- bracket
- hold
- constitute
- form
- consist (of)
- make
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- prevent
- exclude
- leave (out)
- omit
- deny
- preclude
- refuse
- prohibit
- reject
- miss out
- eliminate
- ban
- bar
- debar
- except
- lose
- rule out
- mislay
- misplace
Synonym Chooser
The words appreciate and understand are common synonyms of comprehend. While all three words mean "to have a clear or complete idea of," comprehend may stress the process of coming to grips with something intellectually.
While the synonyms appreciate and comprehend are close in meaning, appreciate implies a just evaluation or judgment of a thing's value or nature.
Both understand and comprehend are very often interchangeable, with understand sometimes stressing the fact of having attained a firm mental grasp of something.