contemplate

contemplate：长时间、认真地观察或思考某事，也可指考虑某种可能性。

💡 记忆钩子

把某件事放在眼前，持续而专注地看清它的各个方面；由“仔细凝视、沉思”自然延伸为“认真考虑是否要做某事”。

📝 学习建议

不要只把它理解成普通的“想”；它强调持续、审慎地思考，常带有从不同方面评估的意味。
学习时先掌握“沉思、仔细考虑”的核心义，再记住它也能表示“考虑某种可能性”。

📖 中文释义

verb

core 仔细观察并沉思

📖 指把某人或某事放在注意力中心，持续、认真地观察它的各个方面，或深入思考它的意义和性质。它既可以是实际上的凝视，也可以是心里的沉思。

💡 常用句型是“contemplate + 名词”，例如表示凝视景色、艺术品或某个问题。这个用法比普通的“看”或“想”更郑重，突出长时间和专注的态度。不要把它当作瞬间看一眼或随便想一想。

She stood by the window, contemplating the changing sky.

她站在窗边，专注地凝望着不断变化的天空。

He spent the evening contemplating the meaning of the painting.

他整个晚上都在沉思那幅画的含义。
common 考虑某种可能性

📖 指认真考虑某件事是否可能、是否值得做，尤其是在作决定之前进行权衡。这里不一定表示已经决定，只表示把这个方案纳入了考虑。

💡 常用句型是“contemplate doing something”或“contemplate the possibility of something”。语气通常比“think about”更正式、更审慎；后面表示行动时应说动名词形式，不要说“contemplate to do something”。

They are contemplating moving to a smaller apartment.

他们正在考虑搬到一套更小的公寓。

contemplates present,singular,third-person contemplating participle,present contemplated participle,past contemplated past

📘 英文释义 (WordNet) 共 4 组

reflect deeply on a subject; ;

同义词集: chew over think over meditate ponder excogitate contemplate muse reflect mull mull over ruminate speculate

I mulled over the events of the afternoon

philosophers have speculated on the question of God for thousands of years

The scientist must stop to observe and start to excogitate

上位: cerebrate, cogitate, think 下位: consider, puzzle, question, study, wonder

consider as a possibility

同义词集: contemplate

I contemplated leaving school and taking a full-time job

上位: consider, deal, look at, take 下位: entertain, flirt with, think about, think of, toy with

think intently and at length, as for spiritual purposes

同义词集: study meditate contemplate

He is meditating in his study

上位: cerebrate, cogitate, think

look at thoughtfully; observe deep in thought

同义词集: contemplate

contemplate one's navel

上位: consider, look at, view

🌳 词源

源自拉丁语，最早见于16世纪90年代，原义与“观察、环视、凝视、沉思”有关。

First attested in the 1590s; borrowed from Latin contemplātus, the perfect active participle of contemplor (“to observe, survey, gaze (at), contemplate”), see -ate (verb-forming suffix). See also template.

🔄 变式

contemplated past contemplates present contemplating present

🏷 单词标签 & 词根