comprehension

noun

com·​pre·​hen·​sion ˌkäm-pri-ˈhen(t)-shən 

-prē-

1

a

: the act or action of grasping with the intellect : understanding

children who have difficulty with comprehension of spoken language

What the artist actually needs is comprehension of his aims and ideals by men he respects …

—H. L. Mencken

b

: knowledge gained by comprehending

tests that measure the students' comprehension in math

She carried on with full comprehension of the risk involved.

c

: the capacity for understanding fully

mysteries that are beyond our comprehension

The war caused suffering beyond comprehension.

2

a

: the act or process of comprising

the comprehension of all the denominations into one Church

b

: the faculty or capability of including : comprehensiveness

the broad comprehension of the word "animal"

3

: connotation sense 3

Synonyms

• understanding
• appreciation

Examples of comprehension in a Sentence

The students showed excellent reading comprehension.

the president's comprehension of the current situation in the Middle East

Recent Examples on the Web

Those aren’t just random words jumbled together to test your reading comprehension—they’re the outcome of recent brand collaborations with Liquid Death. —Dave Smith, Fortune, 18 Aug. 2025

In March 2022, Willis was diagnosed with aphasia, a language disorder that happens when the parts of the brain responsible for speech, comprehension, reading, or writing are damaged. —Marc Berman, Forbes.com, 14 Aug. 2025

In our most recent cycle, students showed measurable gains in both fluency and comprehension. —Lina Ruiz, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 11 Aug. 2025

More than that, does a reading level paint the full picture of your child’s reading interest, fluency, and reading comprehension? —​wendy Wisner, Parents, 11 Aug. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle French & Latin; Middle French, from Latin comprehension-, comprehensio, from comprehendere to understand, comprise

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing comprehension

• beyond comprehension
• beyond comprehension/understanding
• beyond one's comprehension

Rhymes for comprehension

• apprehension
• condescension
• hypertension
• hypotension
• reinvention
• reprehension
• resuspension
• attention
• contention
• convention
• declension
• detention

Kids Definition

comprehension

noun

com·​pre·​hen·​sion ˌkäm-pri-ˈhen-chən 

1

: the act of comprehending

2

: knowledge gained by comprehending

3

: the capacity for understanding