apprehending

verb

present participle of apprehend
1
as in knowing
to have a clear idea of do you apprehend the importance of this discovery?

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in arresting
to take or keep under one's control by authority of law the agency charged with apprehending criminals who have violated federal law

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of apprehending The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation initially contacted Roswell police and asked for assistance locating and apprehending Spruill. — Zachary Bynum, CBS News, 18 Aug. 2026 She’s tasked with apprehending The Puppet Master (Iemasa Kayumi), a hacker who appears to be tapping directly into these networked minds and altering memories. — David Faris, TheWeek, 14 Aug. 2026 The Nodaway County Sheriff’s Office, United States Marshals Service and New Mexico State Police assisted in apprehending Jones, Hann said. — Caroline Zimmerman may 28, Kansas City Star, 28 May 2026 Federal immigration agents fanned across the city, apprehending workers at car washes, garment businesses, Home Depots and other locations. — Los Angeles Times, 27 May 2026 This arc is advancing slower than a glacier on Hoth, and Mando apprehending a couple of mid-level Imps on the big screen doesn't really fill the gap. — Richard Edwards, Space.com, 25 May 2026 In the video shared exclusively with Fox News by ICE, officers are seen apprehending and arresting the Honduran national. — Sarah Rumpf-Whitten , Danamarie McNicholl, FOXNews.com, 9 May 2026 The Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 compelled authorities in northern free states to assist in apprehending and returning those who escaped back to slavery. — Jeremy Mennis, The Conversation, 1 May 2026 Los Angeles ran from 2009 to 2023, centered around the high-stakes world of a division of NCIS that is charged with apprehending dangerous and elusive criminals, who pose a threat to the nation’s security. — Rosy Cordero, Deadline, 15 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for apprehending
  1. knowing
  2. arresting
  3. understanding
  4. seizing
  5. recognizing
  6. detaining
  7. deciphering
  8. comprehending
Verb
  • Any pause and retracement back into that gap gives investors an opportunity to start to accumulate shares knowing that the $230 level should now act as support.
    — Jay Woods, CNBC, 27 Aug. 2026
  • Before work gives way to the weekend, take a few minutes to catch up on the California stories worth knowing today.
    — James Ward, USA Today, 27 Aug. 2026
Definition of knowing
Verb
  • Since his administration launched its mass deportation campaign and reversed limits on ICE arresting military spouses and parents, such arrests have become more common.
    — Camilo Montoya-Galvez, CBS News, 25 Aug. 2026
  • Law enforcement arrived within two minutes, officials said, before engaging the two shooters and arresting them.
    — Cindy Von Quednow, CNN Money, 24 Aug. 2026
Definition of arresting
Verb
  • Following the analytics in this way isn’t all that different from what many media organizations do; understanding the audience is perhaps the most fundamental aspect of longevity in media.
    — Max Tani, semafor.com, 2 Sep. 2026
  • The challenge is finding it and understanding why those earlier decisions were made.
    — Beth Worthy, Forbes.com, 2 Sep. 2026
Definition of understanding
Verb
  • Their demands for records mirror a New Mexico lawsuit and whistleblower claims that agents were ordered to stand down instead of seizing hundreds of thousands of lethal pills.
    — Joshua Goodman, Los Angeles Times, 31 Aug. 2026
  • Since seizing power, Tiani’s government has shifted away from Western partners, deepened ties with Russia and broken with the regional ECOWAS bloc, joining Mali and Burkina Faso to form the breakaway AES bloc.
    — Reuters, NBC news, 29 Aug. 2026
Definition of seizing
Verb
  • States are moving toward recognizing digital and other nontraditional wills.
    — Bob Carlson, Forbes.com, 28 Aug. 2026
  • Hilton said in some cases, women may begin recognizing ADHD symptoms in themselves after becoming mothers and having their children evaluated for the condition.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of recognizing
Verb
  • One day, her teen-age daughter, on the way to choir practice, witnessed ICE detaining someone outside her bus; Bre sent her children to stay with relatives in the suburbs.
    — Emily Witt, New Yorker, 31 Aug. 2026
  • According to witnesses of the raid, local police and Canyon County sheriff’s deputies assisted ICE agents by zip-tying children and detaining people without asking about their immigration status.
    — Rachel Spacek, Los Angeles Times, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of detaining
Verb
  • And navigating a website might involve deciphering images or knowing what links to click.
    — Jennifer D. Kobrin, The Conversation, 25 Aug. 2026
  • The prevention of future pandemics relies on information from previous outbreaks, which is one reason why deciphering the origins of the COVID-19 began is important.
    — Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, 25 Aug. 2026
Definition of deciphering
Verb
  • By utilizing three classes of agents, Microsoft is effectively comprehending the entire threat lifecycle.
    — Will Townsend, Forbes.com, 7 Aug. 2026
  • Without comprehending what was happening, Kikuko looked up at the sagging skin of her father’s throat.
    — Cynthia Zarin, Harpers Magazine, 4 Aug. 2026
Definition of comprehending

Browse Nearby Words

apprehended
apprehending
apprehends
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Apprehending.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/apprehending. Accessed 3 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

A List of Most Commonly Confused Words

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

Stay Woke

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

The Longest Long Words List

Stay Woke
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
skateboard-dog-hat
Wordmaxxing Slang Quiz Give your vocabulary a glow up by getting sendy w...
See All