How to Use ponder in a Sentence

ponder

verb
  • The team pondered their chances of success.
  • We pondered whether we could afford the trip.
  • He pondered the question before he answered.
  • My inner goddess pondered this for the rest of the evening.
    Laura Beck, Cosmopolitan, 6 Feb. 2018
  • Slate jumped in with a piece pondering why no one cared.
    Longreads, 7 June 2019
  • Then stop and ponder just what dogs would be doing in the middle of nowhere.
    Roger Naylor, The Arizona Republic, 28 Aug. 2020
  • The regime and countries in the West are now pondering their next steps.
    The Economist, 11 Jan. 2018
  • Those who apply for the job should ponder the phrase, too.
    Washington Post, 29 Apr. 2022
  • Just her Chevy and time to ponder how things went so wrong so fast.
    Forrest Brown, CNN, 30 Oct. 2021
  • Take the time to ponder and define your unique values and write them down.
    Joe Hart, Rolling Stone, 15 Feb. 2023
  • For some, these questions may be tough to ask and ponder.
    Bianca Lambert, Essence, 10 Jan. 2023
  • But four of them opted to take a gap year and ponder their options.
    Ann Killion, San Francisco Chronicle, 27 Apr. 2021
  • But Mary kept all these things, and pondered them in her heart.
    Pioneer Press, Twin Cities, 25 Dec. 2019
  • Harsin pondered aloud if the refs could work around the action, but said the issue does need to be fixed.
    Dave Southorn and Rachel Roberts, idahostatesman, 4 Nov. 2017
  • This is a great question and one that many people ponder.
    Liz Bentley, Marie Claire, 6 Aug. 2019
  • All James has now is a few weeks to think, a few weeks to ponder his next move.
    Tim Reynolds, Houston Chronicle, 9 June 2018
  • The nine-member panel is far from the first to ponder such questions.
    Morgan Marietta, The Conversation, 4 Nov. 2021
  • Feel free to ponder the physics of it all while taking in the surrounding grassy hills.
    Erin Berger, Outside Online, 17 Apr. 2021
  • Well, that surely gives fans a lot to ponder, and fight over, for the next few months.
    Wired, 21 Oct. 2019
  • But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart.
    Houston Chronicle, 24 Dec. 2017
  • The images compel us to ponder our place within that world.
    John Zotos, Dallas News, 9 July 2020
  • There’s plenty for Nagy to ponder as the players get away and recharge.
    Brad Biggs, chicagotribune.com, 9 Nov. 2021
  • No need to even ponder the question with employees at the ready to answer it for you.
    Washington Post, 9 Dec. 2021
  • These seem like far-out problems, but now is the time to start pondering them.
    Matt Simon, WIRED, 17 May 2018
  • There is more to ponder, in this uncommon movie, than there is to plumb.
    Anthony Lane, The New Yorker, 16 Oct. 2020
  • Older fans in the stands may have pondered being back here all those years later.
    Kirk Kenney, San Diego Union-Tribune, 1 Apr. 2023
  • That wasn’t the first time lawmakers pondered such a mandate.
    Cynthia Sewell, idahostatesman, 6 Feb. 2018
  • These things must be pondered, yawned at, must be managed.
    Gordon Monson, The Salt Lake Tribune, 2 Aug. 2023
  • Once again, the Eldest Boy will be left to ponder what might have been.
    Glenn Whipp, Los Angeles Times, 11 Jan. 2024
  • So here’s a good question to ponder on this warm, summer day.
    Paul Cappiello, The Courier-Journal, 7 Aug. 2021

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'ponder.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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