as in to contemplate
to give serious and careful thought to
by the time he finishes cogitating what to do with his life, it'll be almost over
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Recent Examples of cogitate
What made those songs work, and these, is the sound of Byrne’s mind cogitating inside them.
—
Will Hermes, Rolling Stone, 4 Sep. 2025
This represents the leap from machines that can mimic human outputs to systems that genuinely cogitate—plotting, analyzing, and problem-solving with remarkable acuity.
—Arafat Kabir, Forbes.com, 23 July 2025
Yet the evidence for cogitating pond scum grows daily.
—Rowan Jacobsen, Scientific American, 1 Feb. 2024
With the eruptions and disruptions of digital mass culture as its Ferrari-level engine, often represented by the roaring drama of sport, Pfeiffer’s art cogitates on power as an ongoing campaign waged between the individual and the crowd.
—Christopher Knight, Los Angeles Times, 15 Nov. 2023
While Wall Street and Private Equity leaders have the time to leisurely cogitate the long view, business leaders (CEO’s, CMO’s, etc) have to make commitments today with real dollars based on their best guesses about the state of the consumer next fall and spring.
—Greg Petro, Forbes, 22 Apr. 2022
As his characters cogitate and self-medicate, scheme and philosophize, his subject is less the content of their thoughts than the mind contemplating itself.
—Washington Post, 11 June 2021
Jermaine uncovers America's obsession with capitalism and its cogitating impact on his everyday decision making, as well as those around him.
—Michael Saponara, Billboard, 20 Apr. 2018
Penrose believes that Hawking's condition has forced him to work more creatively, to take imaginative leaps where someone with a less uncertain future might want to cogitate a little longer.
—Jerry Adler, Newsweek, 14 Mar. 2018
Will Hermes, Rolling Stone, 4 Sep. 2025
This represents the leap from machines that can mimic human outputs to systems that genuinely cogitate—plotting, analyzing, and problem-solving with remarkable acuity.
—Arafat Kabir, Forbes.com, 23 July 2025
Yet the evidence for cogitating pond scum grows daily.
—Rowan Jacobsen, Scientific American, 1 Feb. 2024
With the eruptions and disruptions of digital mass culture as its Ferrari-level engine, often represented by the roaring drama of sport, Pfeiffer’s art cogitates on power as an ongoing campaign waged between the individual and the crowd.
—Christopher Knight, Los Angeles Times, 15 Nov. 2023
While Wall Street and Private Equity leaders have the time to leisurely cogitate the long view, business leaders (CEO’s, CMO’s, etc) have to make commitments today with real dollars based on their best guesses about the state of the consumer next fall and spring.
—Greg Petro, Forbes, 22 Apr. 2022
As his characters cogitate and self-medicate, scheme and philosophize, his subject is less the content of their thoughts than the mind contemplating itself.
—Washington Post, 11 June 2021
Jermaine uncovers America's obsession with capitalism and its cogitating impact on his everyday decision making, as well as those around him.
—Michael Saponara, Billboard, 20 Apr. 2018
Penrose believes that Hawking's condition has forced him to work more creatively, to take imaginative leaps where someone with a less uncertain future might want to cogitate a little longer.
—Jerry Adler, Newsweek, 14 Mar. 2018
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cogitate
Verb
-
Hoover bounces back with a clean game, while Coach Prime contemplates making a quarterback change.—
Steven Johnson,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
3 Oct. 2025
-
In 2024, almost one in four Americans experienced mental illness, almost 18% had substance abuse problems and over 5% had contemplated suicide, according to the news release.—
Ray Stern,
AZCentral.com,
2 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Instead, the Mets are back to square one, pondering a new kind of disappointment.—
Tim Britton,
New York Times,
30 Sep. 2025
-
Over a mashup of fiddles and guitars, Tod and Jennings blend their rough-hewn voices on a song about consequences for older vices and choices, pondering when the consequences of those actions outweigh the vices themselves.—
Jessica Nicholson,
Billboard,
29 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
The historic Belcourt Theatre will entertain all the Music City cinephiles.—
Craig Shoup,
Nashville Tennessean,
1 Oct. 2025
-
All of these films have been heavily influenced by 20th century pulp fiction writers, but for his latest movie, Black goes directly to the source, adapting one of the genre’s key figures for an action-comedy as offbeat, idiosyncratic, and entertaining as any Black has made.—
Jim Hemphill,
IndieWire,
1 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Front Office Sports reported Friday that Stars ownership is considering a site in Plano, Texas, approximately 20 miles from Dallas.—
Rob Rossi,
New York Times,
4 Oct. 2025
-
In traditional Chinese medicine, this spice is considered to have antiseptic and digestive benefits.—
Susan Selasky,
Freep.com,
4 Oct. 2025
Verb
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On Sept 5, 2024, a year before his death, Charlie Kirk was debating at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.—
Meagan Jordan,
Rolling Stone,
3 Oct. 2025
-
The effect is to infuse the story with an undeniable and knowing nostalgia; how quaint, at Alma’s party, to find everyone debating matters of representational consequence.—
Justin Chang,
New Yorker,
3 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
But that's nothing new, say linguists and others who study verbal communication.—
Phaedra Trethan,
USA Today,
5 Oct. 2025
-
Looking ahead, China plans to launch its Chang’e-7 lunar probe around 2026, carrying instruments such as a seismograph to study the moon’s internal structure.—
Christopher McFadden,
Interesting Engineering,
5 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Canales’ trust in Young growing A week after Dave Canales called a couple of running plays on third-and-long — prompting a veteran coach with another team to question Canales’ faith in his quarterback — Canales was more aggressive with his play calling with the game on the line.—
Joseph Person,
New York Times,
7 Oct. 2025
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Once Gein's crimes came to light, he was questioned about a number of additional disappearances in the region.—
JR Radcliffe,
jsonline.com,
6 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Cogitate.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cogitate. Accessed 8 Oct. 2025.
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