as in contemplation
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as in contemplating
to give serious and careful thought to
I'm pondering whether or not I should join another committee
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Recent Examples of pondering
Paul Taylor, New York Times, 16 Oct. 2025
That’s 16 days of public silence and private plotting — 16 days of preparing for a case management conference and pondering motions and strategizing for the discovery process and delving into every facet of this year-long case that has no end in sight.
—Jon Wilner, San Diego Union-Tribune, 16 Oct. 2025
In the book, Keaton reflected on modern standards of beauty, pondering the societal obsession with how things look.
—Emily Zemler, Rolling Stone, 11 Oct. 2025
This includes watching the sketches Stiller & Meara performed on countless talk shows, critiquing their respective styles and pondering how much or little from their seemingly candid appearances and interviews was meant to be taken as truth and not performance.
—Daniel Fienberg, HollywoodReporter, 6 Oct. 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
Leonardo DiCaprio has longtime fans pondering if a former teen heartthrob by any other name is still just as famous.
—Glenn Garner, Deadline, 24 Sep. 2025
Figuring out how to manage and reduce stress is always a question worth pondering.
—Helen Carefoot, Flow Space, 17 Sep. 2025
Brendan McDermid | Reuters After Swedish payments group Klarna’s $17 billion initial public offering, investors are pondering which big fintech name will be the next to go public.
—Ryan Browne, CNBC, 15 Sep. 2025
Verb
The Forest owner has been pondering his options That is not unusual — the Greek shipping magnate always likes to have a plan B in place.
—Paul Taylor, New York Times, 16 Oct. 2025
That’s 16 days of public silence and private plotting — 16 days of preparing for a case management conference and pondering motions and strategizing for the discovery process and delving into every facet of this year-long case that has no end in sight.
—Jon Wilner, San Diego Union-Tribune, 16 Oct. 2025
In the book, Keaton reflected on modern standards of beauty, pondering the societal obsession with how things look.
—Emily Zemler, Rolling Stone, 11 Oct. 2025
This includes watching the sketches Stiller & Meara performed on countless talk shows, critiquing their respective styles and pondering how much or little from their seemingly candid appearances and interviews was meant to be taken as truth and not performance.
—Daniel Fienberg, HollywoodReporter, 6 Oct. 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
Leonardo DiCaprio has longtime fans pondering if a former teen heartthrob by any other name is still just as famous.
—Glenn Garner, Deadline, 24 Sep. 2025
Figuring out how to manage and reduce stress is always a question worth pondering.
—Helen Carefoot, Flow Space, 17 Sep. 2025
Brendan McDermid | Reuters After Swedish payments group Klarna’s $17 billion initial public offering, investors are pondering which big fintech name will be the next to go public.
—Ryan Browne, CNBC, 15 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pondering
Noun
-
Both zeroed in on age-old scales and harmonies, extracted them from their usual contexts, and transformed them into objects of contemplation.—
Alex Ross,
New Yorker,
3 Nov. 2025
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Still, this isn’t about contemplation or quiet reflection.—
Valerie Mesa,
PEOPLE,
29 Oct. 2025
Verb
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With John Cena set to retire, many people are contemplating who his opponent should be in his final match.—
Matthew Couden,
MSNBC Newsweek,
5 Nov. 2025
-
Inside, Archimedes begins contemplating the Universe beyond the Earth, and starts recounting various ideas about what its nature could be.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
30 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
Or is there some other thought process?—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
3 Nov. 2025
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Those are the real thoughts and conversations these controllers are having.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
2 Nov. 2025
Verb
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The Oxford Union debating society announced Tuesday the ouster of President-elect George Abaraonye after reported comments celebrating the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.—
Lexi Lonas Cochran,
The Hill,
22 Oct. 2025
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What To Know Measure 26-260 was crafted by the Portland City Council and referred to voters in June after months of debating how to present it to residents.—
Giulia Carbonaro,
MSNBC Newsweek,
21 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
Just like in mindfulness meditation, simply observe your mental processes without judgment.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
5 Nov. 2025
-
Weil argues that following his anti-inflammatory food pyramid and taking up practices such as meditation, yoga, and tai chi can help prevent and treat these diseases of chronic inflammation.—
Jason Liebowitz,
The Atlantic,
4 Nov. 2025
Verb
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According to the agenda for the organization’s regular meeting, the board is considering James Sly, the current chief executive officer of the East County Economic Development Corporation, to serve as its next leader.—
Paul Sisson,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
5 Nov. 2025
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The democratic control of a new technology like AI requires public deliberation, and such public deliberation might seem impossible considering the view held by many (and reinforced by the tech industry) that AI is very complicated.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
5 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
Other ethical considerations will arise as the watches go into production.—
Oscar Holland,
CNN Money,
6 Nov. 2025
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Coming out of Toronto, she was immediately put into awards consideration.—
Andreas Wiseman,
Deadline,
6 Nov. 2025
Verb
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By studying quenching mechanics at the microscopic level, Graffiedi aims to enable faster refueling in orbit.—
Chris Young,
Interesting Engineering,
3 Nov. 2025
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Rucci’s journey into fashion began unexpectedly while studying philosophy and literature at Temple University.—
Tonya Blazio-Licorish,
Footwear News,
3 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Pondering.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pondering. Accessed 7 Nov. 2025.
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