ponder

English

Etymology

From Latin ponderare (“to weigh, ponder, in Medieval Latin also to load”), from pondus (“weight”), from pendere (“to weigh”); see pendent and pound.

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˈpɒn.də(r)/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɒndə(r)

Verb

ponder (third-person singular simple present ponders, present participle pondering, simple past and past participle pondered)

1. To wonder, to think of deeply.
2. To consider (something) carefully and thoroughly; to chew over, to mull over.

   [It's] time to ponder over its fallacies

Synonyms

• chew over
• mull over
• See also Wikisaurus:ponder

Related terms

• preponder
• preponderance
• preponderant
• preponderate

Translations

to think deeply

Chinese: Mandarin: 思考 (zh) (sīkǎo), 琢磨 (zh) (zuómo), 沉思 (zh) (chénsī) Finnish: pohtia (fi) French: songer (fr), réfléchir (fr) German: grübeln (de) Hebrew: הרהר (he) (hirhér)

Hungarian: mereng (hu), elmereng (hu), tűnődik (hu), eltűnődik (hu), elmélkedik (hu) Icelandic: íhuga Italian: ponderare (it) Russian: размышлять (ru) (razmyšlját’) impf., размыслить (ru) (razmýslit’) pf. Scottish Gaelic: meòraich (gd), cnuasaich (gd) Spanish: considerar (es), meditar (es) Swedish: fundera (sv), begrunda (sv)

to consider carefully

Chinese: Mandarin: 思考 (zh) (sīkǎo), 考慮 (zh), 考虑 (zh) (kǎolǜ) Finnish: pohtia (fi) French: s'interroger (fr) German: überlegen (de), nachdenken (de) Hungarian: latolgat (hu), fontolgat (hu), mérlegel (hu), fontolóra vesz (hu)

Icelandic: íhuga Italian: ponderare (it) Russian: обдумывать (ru) (obdúmyvat’) impf., обдумать (ru) (obdúmat’) pf. Scottish Gaelic: meòraich (gd), cnuasaich (gd) Spanish: ponderar (es) Swedish: fundera, grubbla

External links

• ponder in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913
• ponder in The Century Dictionary, The Century Co., New York, 1911