APPREHENDS Synonyms: 99 Similar and Opposite Words

apprehends

verb

present tense third-person singular of apprehend

as in knows

to have a clear idea of do you apprehend the importance of this discovery?

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in arrests

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 apprehends John Early, as anyone encountering his work soon apprehends, chooses the latter. — Lauren Michele Jackson, New Yorker, 7 June 2026 Though the team immediately apprehends a suspect, the Marshals end up taking criticism from both sides. — Saman Shafiq, USA Today, 21 Mar. 2026 Neighbors are now living in fear, looking on as ICE apprehends people of color across Minnesota. — Jason Rantala, CBS News, 19 Jan. 2026 The team successfully seizes two tons of gold and apprehends the leader of the criminal network. — Isabella Wandermurem, Time, 14 Jan. 2026 Suppose the number is read in one case out of a hundred, and that the information reaches someone who apprehends the culprit in one case out of one thousand. — Thomas Brewster, Forbes.com, 3 Sep. 2025

Recent Examples of Synonyms for apprehends

Verb

And who knows about Newcastle, who have lost three crucial players and only really brought in promising youngsters, all of whom will be managed by someone recruited from the Saudi Pro League.

— Nick Miller, New York Times, 15 Aug. 2026
The Beast in Me showrunner Howard Gordon knows there was one scene in the Netflix limited series that was divisive because of its brutality.

— Beatrice Verhoeven, HollywoodReporter, 15 Aug. 2026

Definition of knows

Verb

Keith arrests our thinking, and cons us into suppressing our critical faculties with the same kind of internalized surveillance that philosopher Michel Foucault broke down to describe a prison’s use of the panopticon in Discipline and Punish.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 19 May 2026
Devlin throws a punch at Stone when the chief arrests him for drunken driving.

— Sandra Dallas, Denver Post, 19 Apr. 2026

Definition of arrests

Verb

Early in the first episode, viewers see Sean Combs discussing the importance of media strategy and saying his team needs someone who understands propaganda and media manipulation.

— Krystie Lee Yandoli, USA Today, 14 Aug. 2026
Do not hope everyone magically understands the practical need today.

— Tarot.com, Hartford Courant, 13 Aug. 2026

Definition of understands

Verb

If developmental science justifies treating adolescent offenders differently from adults, then that same science should also inform how Connecticut recognizes, protects, and supports adolescent victims.

— Keith Wortz, Hartford Courant, 13 Aug. 2026
Obreht distinguishes herself as a spellbinding writer who recognizes the ways that mythologies bend the truth to dazzle us with stories that capture a larger history.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 13 Aug. 2026

Definition of recognizes

Verb

The policy guidance applies to agents under Enforcement and Removal Operations, the branch of ICE that detains and ultimately deports undocumented immigrants.

— Philip Wang, Time, 14 July 2026
Alligator Alcatraz houses a few hundred employees in trailers and detains about 650 male immigrants in large tents; until a few weeks ago, the number of those being detained was nearly 1,500.

— Eric Schlosser, The Atlantic, 4 June 2026

Definition of detains

Verb

In an oppositional reading of a media text, the audience comprehends that the message conflicts with or contradicts their personal experiences of society.

— Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, 5 May 2026
In the end, A Guardian and a Thief is a story that comprehends hunger more deeply than the world that produces it.

— Tope Folarin, The Atlantic, 8 Nov. 2025

Definition of comprehends

Verb

But his wildly unfiltered speech grabs the attention of beautiful and brash public defender Ginger (Gilpin), herself a crusader for truth.

— Denise Petski, Deadline, 12 Aug. 2026
Profanity also grabs attention since the shock value of an F-bomb can lead to more media coverage and clips circulating on social media.

— Jeff Wagner, CBS News, 11 Aug. 2026

Definition of grabs

Browse Nearby Words

apprehending

apprehends

apprehensible

See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Style

“Apprehends.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/apprehends. Accessed 21 Aug. 2026.

Copy Citation

Synonyms of apprehends

verb

Example Sentences

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

More from Merriam-Webster on apprehends

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

rigmarole

Popular in Grammar & Usage

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

How to Pronounce the Trickiest Menu Items

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Do you 'say your piece' or 'say your peace'?

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Popular in Wordplay

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List

Even More Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

The Words of the Week - Aug. 21

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

Popular

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

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List

Games & Quizzes