ponder (v.)

mid-14c., ponderen, "to estimate the worth of, to appraise" (a sense now obsolete), from Old French ponderer "to weigh, poise" (14c., Modern French pondérer) and directly from Latin ponderare "ponder, consider, reflect," literally "to weigh," from pondus (genitive ponderis) "weight," from stem of pendere "to hang, cause to hang; weigh" (from PIE root *(s)pen- "to draw, stretch, spin"). Meaning "to judge (a matter or action) mentally, weigh carefully in the mind" is attested from late 14c. Related: Pondered; pondering; ponderation (1550s in the mental sense).

also from mid-14c.

Entries linking to ponder

imponderable (adj.)

1794, "weightless," from assimilated form of in- (1) "not, opposite of" + ponderable (see ponder). Figurative use, "unthinkable," from 1814. As a noun from 1829, originally meaning heat, light, electricity, etc., as having no weight. Related: Imponderably; imponderability. Imponderous is attested from 1640s as "without weight." Imponderabilia "unthinkable things collectively" is attested from 1835.

ponderance (n.)

"weight, gravity, importance," 1798, from ponder + -ance or Latin ponderantem. Ponderment as "the act of weighing (something) in the mind" is by 1763.

*(s)pen-

Proto-Indo-European root meaning "to draw, stretch, spin."

It forms all or part of: append; appendix; avoirdupois; compendium; compensate; compensation; counterpoise; depend; dispense; equipoise; expend; expense; expensive; hydroponics; impend; painter (n.2) "rope or chain that holds an anchor to a ship's side;" pansy; penchant; pend; pendant; pendentive; pending; pendular; pendulous; pendulum; pension; pensive; penthouse; perpendicular; peso; poise; ponder; ponderous; pound (n.1) "measure of weight;" prepend; prepense; preponderate; propensity; recompense; span (n.1) "distance between two objects;" span (n.2) "two animals driven together;" spangle; spanner; spend; spider; spin; spindle; spinner; spinster; stipend; suspend; suspension.

It is the hypothetical source of/evidence for its existence is provided by: Latin pendere "to hang, to cause to hang," pondus "weight" (perhaps the notion is the weight of a thing measured by how much it stretches a cord), pensare "to weigh, consider;" Greek ponos "toil," ponein "to toil;" Lithuanian spendžiu, spęsti "lay a snare;" Old Church Slavonic peti "stretch, strain," pato "fetter," pina "I span;" Old English spinnan "to spin," spannan "to join, fasten; stretch, span;" Armenian henum "I weave;" Greek patos "garment," literally "that which is spun;" Lithuanian pinu "I plait, braid," spandau "I spin;" Middle Welsh cy-ffiniden "spider;" Old English spinnan "draw out and twist fibers into thread," spiðra "spider," literally "spinner."

Trends of ponder

adapted from books.google.com/ngrams/. Ngrams are probably unreliable.

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meditate

1580s, "to ponder, think abstractly, engage in mental contemplation" (intransitive), probably a back-formation from meditation, or else from Latin meditatus, past participle of meditari "to meditate, think over, reflect, consider," frequentative form of PIE root *med- "take appro

contemplate

1590s, "reflect upon, ponder, study, view mentally, meditate," from Latin contemplatus, past participle of contemplari "to gaze attentively, observe; consider, contemplate," originally "to mark out a space for observation" (as an augur does), from assimilated form of com-, here p

muse

"to reflect, ponder, meditate; to be absorbed in thought," mid-14c., from Old French muser (12c.) "to ponder, dream, wonder; loiter, waste time," which is of uncertain origin; the explanation in Diez and Skeat is literally "to stand with one's nose in the air" (or, possibly, "to

aspect

appearance," from past participle of aspicere "to look at, look upon, behold; observe, examine," figuratively "consider, ponder...

mull

"ponder, turn over in one's mind," 1873, perhaps from a figurative use of mull (v.)...

amuse

literally "cause to muse" (as a distraction), from a "at, to" (from Latin ad, but here probably a causal prefix) + muser "ponder...

trace

late 14c., "follow (a course); draw a line, make an outline of something," also figurative; "ponder, investigate," from Old...

think

Old English þencan "imagine, conceive in the mind; consider, meditate, remember; intend, wish, desire" (past tense þohte, past participle geþoht), probably originally "cause to appear to oneself," from Proto-Germanic *thankjan (source also of Old Frisian thinka, Old Saxon thenkia

study

early 12c., studien, "to strive toward, devote oneself to, cultivate" (virtue, vice, wisdom, art, etc., sometimes translating Latin occupare), from Old French estudiier "to study, apply oneself, show zeal for; examine" (13c., Modern French étudier). This is from Medieval Latin st

introspect

1680s, "to look into" (transitive), from Latin introspectus, past participle of introspicere "look at, look into; examine, observe attentively," from intro- "inward" (see intro-) + specere "to look at" (from PIE root *spek- "to observe"). Meaning "look within, search one's feelin

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updated on August 27, 2020

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Dictionary entries near ponder

pompous

pon

ponce

poncho

pond

ponder

ponderance

ponderosa

ponderous

pone

pong