Comprehension

3 definitions found

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Comprehension \Com`pre*hen"sion\, n. [L. comprehensio: cf. F.
     compr['e]hension.]
     1. The act of comprehending, containing, or comprising;
        inclusion.
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              In the Old Testament there is a close comprehension
              of the New; in the New, an open discovery of the
              Old.                                  --Hooker.
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     2. That which is comprehended or inclosed within narrow
        limits; a summary; an epitome. [Obs.]
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              Though not a catalogue of fundamentals, yet . . . a
              comprehension of them.                --Chillingworth.
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     3. The capacity of the mind to perceive and understand; the
        power, act, or process of grasping with the intellect;
        perception; understanding; as, a comprehension of abstract
        principles.
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     4. (Logic) The complement of attributes which make up the
        notion signified by a general term.
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     5. (Rhet.) A figure by which the name of a whole is put for a
        part, or that of a part for a whole, or a definite number
        for an indefinite.
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From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:

  comprehension
       n 1: an ability to understand the meaning or importance of
            something (or the knowledge acquired as a result); "how
            you can do that is beyond my comprehension"; "he was
            famous for his comprehension of American literature"
            [ant: {incomprehension}]
       2: the relation of comprising something; "he admired the
          inclusion of so many ideas in such a short work" [syn: {inclusion}]

From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0 [moby-thes]:

  68 Moby Thesaurus words for "comprehension":
     IQ, admissibility, admission, apprehension, assimilation, caliber,
     capacity, clairvoyance, command, completeness, comprehensiveness,
     comprisal, conception, conceptualization, coverage,
     deductive power, eligibility, embodiment, embracement,
     encompassment, envisagement, esemplastic power, exhaustiveness,
     foreknowledge, grasp, grip, ideation, inclusion, inclusiveness,
     incorporation, integrative power, intellect, intellection,
     intellectual grasp, intellectual power, intellectualism,
     intellectuality, intelligence, intelligence quotient, knowledge,
     mastery, membership, mental age, mental capacity, mental grasp,
     mental ratio, mentality, mother wit, native wit, openness,
     participation, power of mind, precognition, prehension,
     rationality, reasoning power, reception, sanity, savvy,
     scope of mind, sense, thinking power, tolerance, toleration,
     understanding, whole, wisdom, wit