CONTEMPLATE


Meaning of CONTEMPLATE in English

ˈkäntəmˌplāt, -(ˌ)tem-; rap. often ˈkänəmˌ-; sporadically and old-fash kənˈtemˌ-; usu -ād.+V verb

( -ed/-ing/-s )

Etymology: Latin contemplatus, past participle of contemplari, contemplare, from com- + -templari, -templare (from templum space for observation marked out by the augur) — more at temple

transitive verb

1. : to view with sustained attention : gaze at thoughtfully for a noticeable time : observe with ostensibly steady reflection

a way of looking her over from beneath lowered lids while he affected to be … contemplating the tip of his shining boot — Edith Wharton

2. : to view mentally with continued thoughtfulness, attention, or reflection : muse or ponder about

while in your pride ye contemplate your talents, power, or wisdom — William Wordsworth

3. : to view mentally in a stated or implied way with thoughtfulness and reflection:

a. : to think about or regard from a certain viewpoint or in a certain light or respect

the opinion … that while science, by a deliberate abstraction, contemplates a world of facts without values, religion contemplates values apart from facts — W.R.Inge

b. : to have in view as a purpose : anticipate doing or performing : plan on : intend , plan

absent-mindedly feeling in their pockets as men do when contemplating a purchase — Kenneth Roberts

c. : to dream of as a cherished aim : envision

the moment and the act he had contemplated for weeks with a thrill of pleasure — Thomas Hardy

d. : to presume or imply as a concomitant or result : postulate , presuppose

the law would seem to contemplate that it should be made to the secretary of state — John Marshall

4. : to view or regard (as an object or an objective fact) with detachment

since contemplation is an intellectual exercise it cannot allow itself to be identified with the thing contemplated — Leon Livingstone

— compare enjoy

intransitive verb

: ponder , muse , meditate

to sit still and contemplate — to remember the faces of women without desire — R.L.Stevenson

Synonyms: see consider

Webster's New International English Dictionary.      Новый международный словарь английского языка Webster.