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

• Cherokee: ᎠᏓᏅᏖᏗ (chr) (adanvtedi)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 思考 (cmn) (sīkǎo), 琢磨 (cmn) (zuómo), 沉思 (cmn) (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), mérlegel (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), cavilar (es)
• Swedish: fundera (sv), begrunda (sv)

to consider carefully

• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 思考 (cmn) (sīkǎo), 考慮 (cmn), 考虑 (cmn) (kǎolǜ)

• Dutch: overdenken (nl)
• 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)
• Latin: expendo (la)
• 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