comprehend

verb

com·​pre·​hend ˌkäm-pri-ˈhend 

-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

ˌkäm-pri-ˈhen-də-bəl 

-prē-

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.

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

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

Imagine leveraging this technology to bridge cultural divides, comprehend opposing political viewpoints, or gain insight into different socio-economic backgrounds. —Cornelia C. Walther, Forbes.com, 27 Mar. 2025

We’re all interconnected in economic webs too tangled to fully comprehend, let alone sanitize. —Kwame Anthony Appiah, New York Times, 26 Mar. 2025

This hasn’t exactly been welcome news to Netflix, whose notes on the show point to them not comprehending the purpose behind such a purposeless show. —Harrison Richlin, IndieWire, 23 Mar. 2025

None of this would matter greatly if Murillo did not fully comprehend that the priority for a centre-back is to keep out the opposition. —Daniel Taylor, The Athletic, 21 Mar. 2025

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

Rhymes for comprehend

• apprehend
• condescend
• dividend
• recommend
• resuspend
• amend
• append
• ascend
• attend
• backend
• befriend
• boyfriend

Kids Definition

comprehend

verb

com·​pre·​hend ˌkäm-pri-ˈhend 

1

: to grasp the meaning of : understand

2

: include

comprehendible

-ˈhen-də-bəl 

adjective

comprehensibility

-ˌhen(t)-sə-ˈbil-ət-ē

noun

comprehensible

-ˈhen(t)-sə-bəl

adjective

comprehensibly

-ˈhen(t)-sə-blē

adverb