Verbs of Mental Processes - Verbs for Cognition and Perception

Here you will learn some English verbs referring to cognition and perception such as "understand", "decipher", and "realize".

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Verbs of Mental Processes
to know
to know [verb]

to have some information about something

Ex: He knows that he needs to study more for the exam .
to understand
to understand [verb]

to know something's meaning, particularly something that someone says

Ex: He did n't understand the contract he was agreeing to .
to interpret
to interpret [verb]

to understand or assign meaning to something

Ex: Interpreting facial expressions helps people understand emotions in non-verbal communication .
to comprehend
to comprehend [verb]

to fully understand something, especially something complicated

Ex: To comprehend the intricacies of a foreign language , one must immerse themselves in its culture .
to figure out
to figure out [verb]

to reach an understanding of a person's actions, motives, or personality

Ex: Through open communication , they tried to figure out each other 's perspectives and concerns .
to apprehend
to apprehend [verb]

to mentally grasp or understand

Ex: After numerous explanations , the students finally apprehended the historical context of the events .
to decipher
to decipher [verb]

to interpret or understand something that is difficult or unclear

Ex: She used a dictionary to decipher the unfamiliar words in the letter .
to realize
to realize [verb]

to have a sudden or complete understanding of a fact or situation

Ex: They only realized the importance of the meeting once it was too late .
to dawn on
to dawn on [verb]

to become clear, evident, or understood, particularly after some time

Ex: As they explored the ancient artifacts , the historical significance began to dawn on the archaeologists .
to occur to
to occur to [verb]

(of thoughts and ideas) to come to someone's mind

Ex: It occurred to her that she had left her keys at home .
to fathom
to fathom [verb]

to understand and make sense of something after giving it a lot of thought

Ex: After hours of contemplation , he finally fathomed the meaning behind the cryptic message .
to see through
to see through [verb]

to understand the true intentions of something or someone

Ex: As a parent , you often see through your child 's attempts to avoid bedtime .
to savvy
to savvy [verb]

to understand something

Ex: The mechanic savvied the engine troubles by listening to the distinct sounds it made .
to recognize
to recognize [verb]

to know who a person or what an object is, because we have heard, seen, etc. them before

Ex: The dog recognized its owner ’s scent from a distance .
to grok
to grok [verb]

to deeply understand something

Ex: It took years for him to grok the complexities of quantum mechanics , but his breakthroughs were significant .
to discern
to discern [verb]

to understand something through thought or reasoning

Ex: The student discerned the deeper meaning behind the poet 's words .
to construe
to construe [verb]

to interpret a certain meaning from something

Ex: Readers may construe various interpretations from a piece of poetry based on personal experiences .
to identify
to identify [verb]

to be able to say who or what someone or something is

Ex: The teacher identified the student 's handwriting on the exam .
to cognize
to cognize [verb]

to understand or become aware of something through thinking or consciousness

Ex: Last week , he cognized the significance of time management in his work .
to notice
to notice [verb]

to pay attention and become aware of a particular thing or person

Ex: Did you notice the new employee in our department ?
to sink in
to sink in [verb]

to gradually understand a concept, often accompanied by an emotional response

Ex: The gravity of the responsibility is starting to sink in as the project progresses .
to distinguish
to distinguish [verb]

to recognize and mentally separate two things, people, etc.

Ex: The expert distinguishes between authentic and counterfeit artworks .
to [know] {sth} from {sth}
to [know] {sth} from {sth} [phrase]

to distinguish or identify between two things based on knowledge or familiarity

Ex: She knows a genuine painting from a fake one with ease .
to think
to think [verb]

to use your mind to understand something, solve a problem, make a decision, etc. or to use it to consider someone or something

Ex: They are thinking about moving to a different city next year .
to see
to see [verb]

to realize or understand something

Ex: I finally see the importance of time management in my work .
to deduce
to deduce [verb]

to determine by a process of logical reasoning

Ex: Sherlock Holmes could deduce intricate details about a crime scene through careful observation .
to infer
to infer [verb]

to reach an opinion or decision based on available evidence and one's understanding of the matter

Ex: Scientists can infer the existence of certain particles based on experimental results .
to gather
to gather [verb]

to understand information based on what is available

Ex: From the way her friend hesitated before answering , she gathered that something was on their mind .
to intuit
to intuit [verb]

to grasp or comprehend something instinctively and without conscious reasoning

Ex: She could intuit the general direction of the project based on the team 's discussions .
to make out
to make out [verb]

to understand something, often with effort

Ex: Can you help me make out what 's driving him to behave this way ?
to perceive
to perceive [verb]

to realize through the senses

Ex: Cats can perceive high-frequency sounds that are inaudible to humans .
to sense
to sense [verb]

to comprehend or interpret the meaning of something

Ex: As he read the novel , he slowly began to sense the author 's hidden commentary .
to read
to read [verb]

to look at written or printed words or symbols and understand their meaning

Ex: It 's important to read the terms and conditions before agreeing .
to read through
to read through [verb]

to carefully read something from start to finish, often with the purpose of identifying errors

Ex: They read through the proposal , evaluating its feasibility and identifying any areas of concern .
Verbs of Mental Processes
Verbs for Cognition and Perception Verbs for Deep Thought Verbs for Having an Opinion or Tendency Verbs for Memory and Attention
Verbs for Learning Verbs for Decision-Making Verbs for Assumption and Estimation Verbs for Desires
Verbs for Making Mistakes Verbs for Prediction and Anticipation Verbs for Evasion and Prevention Verbs for Imagination
Verbs for Innovation and Creation