apprehension

1 suspicion or fear of future harm or misfortune the hikers entered the dark cave with a great deal of apprehension Synonyms alarm (also alarum), apprehensiveness, dread, foreboding, misgiving Related Words agitation, anxiety, anxiousness, concern, disquiet, disquietude, distress, disturbance, fearfulness, funk, perturbation, solicitude, suspense, unease, uneasiness; scruple, worry; doubt, incertitude, mistrust, suspiciousness, uncertainty, wariness; defeatism, pessimism; foreknowledge, premonition, presage, presentiment Near Antonyms anticipation, excitement, hope, hopefulness; confidence, optimism, sanguinity

2 the act of taking into one's control by authority of law apprehension of the burglar set the neighborhood at ease Synonyms arrest, arrestment, bust [slang], collar, pinchRelated Words raid; house arrest; capture, entrapment, seizure; captivity, confinement, detention, enchainment, hold, immurement, imprisonment, incarceration, restraint; rearrest; remandNear Antonyms emancipation, liberation, releaseAntonyms discharge

3 an uneasy state of mind usually over the possibility of an anticipated misfortune or trouble felt a great deal of apprehension about the trip and about arriving safely Synonyms agita, agitation, anxiousness, anxiety, apprehensiveness, care, concern, concernment, disquiet, disquietude, fear, nervosity, nervousness, perturbation, solicitude, sweat, unease, uneasiness, worryRelated Words strain, stress, tension; alarm (also alarum), anguish, consternation, desperateness, desperation, discomfort, discomposure, dismay, distraction, distress, disturbance, edginess, franticness, hand-wringing, jitters, jumpiness, panic, tremor; angst, fearfulness, torment, upset, vexation; cold feet, doubt, dread, foreboding, incertitude, misgiving, presentiment, suspense, uncertainty; compunction, qualm, scrupleNear Antonyms calm, calmness, content, contentment, ease, easiness, peace, peacefulness, placidity, placidness, quiet, quietude, sereneness, serenity, tranquillity (or tranquility), tranquilness; comfort, consolation, relief, solaceAntonyms unconcern

4 the knowledge gained from the process of coming to know or understand something a good apprehension of how computer systems work Synonyms appreciation, comprehension, grasp, grip, hold, perception, percipience, understandingRelated Words absorption, assimilation, digestion, uptake; conception, visualization; awareness, consciousness, enlightenment, realizationNear Antonyms misapprehension, miscomprehension, misinterpretation, misperception, misunderstandingAntonyms incomprehension, noncomprehension