apprehension

noun ap·pre·hen·sion \ ˌa-pri-ˈhen(t)-shən \

|Updated on: 9 Jul 2018

Examples: apprehension in a Sentence

Editor's Note: Latin Helps Build apprehension

Definition of apprehension

1 : suspicion or fear especially of future evil : foreboding

an atmosphere of nervous apprehension

2 : seizure by legal process : arrest

apprehension of a criminal

3 a : the act or power of perceiving or comprehending something

a person of dull apprehension

b : the result of apprehending something mentally : conception

according to popular apprehension

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Examples of apprehension in a Sentence

The thought of moving to a new city fills me with apprehension.
an increased number of apprehensions

Recent Examples of apprehension from the Web

But since the end of the 1990s, annual apprehensions have only occasionally surpassed the 1 million mark.

— david yaffe-bellany, star-telegram, "For Texas ranchers living along border fence, talk of an illegal crossing crisis is exaggerated," 1 July 2018
In 2017, when apprehensions were 303,916, there were 16,605 Southwest border agents.

— lori robertson, USA TODAY, "Illegal immigration: Separating the facts from fiction," 30 June 2018
In the 2017 fiscal year, apprehensions along the southern border hit their lowest level since 1971.

— The Economist, "America’s immigration system is broken," 28 June 2018
The Seakeeper is part of a digital transformation in boating that addresses apprehensions of new boaters with a variety of boathandling aids and assists.

— dan neil, WSJ, "Skip the Seasickness: How Boats Are Getting More Tech-Savvy," 28 June 2018
That trend is also true for family apprehensions along the California border.

— kate morrissey, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Parents deported without children even before "zero-tolerance" policy: report," 28 June 2018
During 7-on-7 drills this spring, Moorhead heard whoas of excitement and apprehension when Fitzgerald scrambled from the pocket at full speed.

— ross dellenger, SI.com, "Nick Fitzgerald Rehabs and Readies to Embrace an Offense That Could Make Him Better Than Ever," 27 June 2018
Police believe Cote is actively avoiding apprehension.

— abigail feldman, BostonGlobe.com, "State police add man charged with child pornography to Most Wanted list," 26 June 2018
Following some apprehension, Kanye reluctantly screamed and this was the beginning of getting back to himself.

— michael saponara, Billboard, "6 Things We Learned From Kanye West's 'New York Times' Interview," 25 June 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'apprehension.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Latin Helps Build apprehension

The Latin verb prehendere really grabs our attention. It means "to grasp" or "to seize," and it is an ancestor of various English words. It teamed up with the prefix ad- (which takes the form ap- before p and means "to," "toward," or "near") to form apprehendere, the Latin predecessor of our words apprehension, apprehend, and apprehensive. When prehendere joined the prefix com- ("with," "together," "jointly"), Latin got comprehendere, and English eventually got comprehend, comprehension, and comprehensive. Prehendere also gave us the words comprise, prehensile ("adapted for seizing or grasping"), prison, reprehend, and reprise, among others.