of or inclined to contemplation; thoughtful; meditative
Origin of contemplative
Middle English contemplatif from Old French from Classical Latin contemplativus one who is dedicated to religious meditation, esp. in a religious order
adjective
The definition of contemplative is being deep in thought or meditation.
When you are sitting quietly and meditating on religion and life, this is an example of a time when you are contemplative.
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"contemplative." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 13 February 2019. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/Contemplative>.
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contemplative. (n.d.). Retrieved February 13th, 2019, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/Contemplative
contemplative
Webster's New World College Dictionary, Fifth Edition Copyright © 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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"contemplative." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 13 February 2019. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/Contemplative>.
APA Style
contemplative. (n.d.). Retrieved February 13th, 2019, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/Contemplative
contemplative
adjective
Disposed to or characterized by contemplation. See Synonyms at pensive.
noun
- A person given to contemplation.
- A member of a religious order that emphasizes meditation.
Related Forms:
- con·tem′pla·tive·ly
adverb
- con·tem′pla·tive·ness
noun
THE AMERICAN HERITAGE® DICTIONARY OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE, FIFTH EDITION by the Editors of the American Heritage Dictionaries. Copyright © 2016, 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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MLA Style
"contemplative." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 13 February 2019. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/Contemplative>.
APA Style
contemplative. (n.d.). Retrieved February 13th, 2019, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/Contemplative
Adjective
(comparative more contemplative, superlative most contemplative)
- Inclined to contemplate; introspective and thoughtful; meditative.
- Pertaining especially to a contemplative Roman Catholic religious or one of the contemplative Roman Catholic religious orders.
- Relating to, or having the power of, contemplation.
- contemplative faculties
Origin
From Old French contemplatif, from the participle stem of Latin contemplāre.
English Wiktionary. Available under CC-BY-SA license.
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Cite this page
MLA Style
"contemplative." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 13 February 2019. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/Contemplative>.
APA Style
contemplative. (n.d.). Retrieved February 13th, 2019, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/Contemplative
Sentence Examples
- His contemplative gaze ran over her face and paused on her lips.
- She was contemplative and calm, sad but not suicidal.
- He experienced within himself the inward call to seek the amelioration of mankind and their deliverance from ruin, and regarded this inner impulse, intensified as it was by long, contemplative solitude and by visions, as being the call addressed to him by God Himself.
- The life is mainly given up to devotional contemplative exercises; the church services are of extreme length; intellectual study is little cultivated; manual labour has almost disappeared; there are many hermits on Athos.
- The contemplative asceticism of the Essenes of Judaea may be mentioned, and, somewhat later, the life of the Therapeutae on the shores of Lake Moeris.
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WORDS NEAR contemplative IN THE DICTIONARY
- contemplative
- contemplation of death
- contemplations
- contemplatist