comprehend
Usage
What are other ways to say comprehend?
To comprehend is to know something thoroughly and to perceive its relationships to certain other ideas, facts, etc. To know is to be aware of something as a fact or truth: He knows the basic facts of the subject. I know that he agrees with me. To understand is to be fully aware not only of the meaning of something but also of its implications: I could comprehend all he said, but did not understand that he was joking.
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.
See Examples For:
"We cannot comprehend what the families of the three fishermen are going through at the moment."
From BBC ● Oct. 15, 2026
“There is no privileged access to understanding its direction. You need to look through as many windows as possible. We humans are limited and exhausted and can’t comprehend the world in its fullness.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 30, 2026
Huang said that world models, which are designed to comprehend real-world physics, may still struggle to actually achieve that goal in three years.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 5, 2026
The scale of the peril is hard to comprehend and harder to articulate; they’re more curious to explore the crisis than find a fix.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 19, 2026
Most of the “TB tribe” who knew about Farmer considered Socios en Salud’s work unorthodox and Farmer something of a maverick—a clinician too interested in individual patients to comprehend the global TB picture.
From "Mountains Beyond Mountains" by Tracy Kidder and Michael French
College Football Brain is why we still have Zombie Bowl games layered on top of this 12-team playoff, as if anyone actually cares or comprehends why the quarterfinal needs to masquerade as the Cotton Bowl.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 1, 2025
They communicate verbally and also, often in games, only with a nod or a look that the other instantly comprehends.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 2, 2024
“I don’t think she comprehends the breadth and depth of the suffering she has caused,” a tearful Ruetten said.
From Seattle Times ● May 21, 2024
She comprehends the win-win dynamic of a dual hosting model, especially when the other host is a professional comic.
From Salon ● Oct. 1, 2023
He comprehends it, being a man full grown, able to oversee the kind of house Zeus would endow with honor.
From "The Odyssey" by Homer
They are to be relished if not comprehended.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 9, 2026
I intellectually comprehended this rule, but living through it was another thing entirely.
From Slate ● Sep. 4, 2025
“I could have never comprehended such a perfect opportunity to align with my goals as an artist and future arts leader and an arts advocate.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 19, 2025
He told the inquiry he had been "frustrated" that some government officials had not "comprehended the figures".
From BBC ● Oct. 17, 2023
The smile comprehended Montenegro's troubled history and sympathized with the brave struggles of the Montenegrin people.
From " The Great Gatsby" by F. Scott Fitzgerald
"She's nonverbal, so we're not sure how much she is comprehending about what is going on at the moment," Lauer told AFP.
From Barron's ● Oct. 17, 2026
“Higher capacity is required for complex transactions like contracts, which require not just grasping the immediate exchange, but also comprehending finer details, consequences and the broader context.”
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 20, 2026
And once comprehending, shall he go with the flow?
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 9, 2026
Yet as commander in chief, wisely comprehending that no war to save the Union could be waged, much less won, exclusively by Republicans, Lincoln sought out Democrats to help battle secession.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 5, 2026
Amari replied with a nod, not exactly understanding what Polly had said but comprehending the idea.
From "Copper Sun" by Sharon M. Draper
Vocabulary lists containing comprehend
Vocabulary of the Common Core
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