Word
meditate
Phoneticsmed·i·tate
US/ˈmɛdəˌteɪt/
UK/mˈɛdɪtˌeɪt/
Definition
v. to spend time in quiet thought to relax your mind or for religious reasons.
v. to engage in mental exercise, such as concentration on one's breathing or a mantra, for the purpose of reaching a heightened level of spiritual awareness or relaxation.
Examples
“I try to meditate for ten minutes every morning.”
“Many people find that they can manage their stress levels better if they meditate regularly in a quiet space.”
“While some practitioners meditate to achieve a state of religious enlightenment, others use the technique as a secular tool to improve focus and emotional regulation in high-pressure environments.”
Examples
simple
“I try to meditate for ten minutes every morning.”
contextual
“Many people find that they can manage their stress levels better if they meditate regularly in a quiet space.”
complex
“While some practitioners meditate to achieve a state of religious enlightenment, others use the technique as a secular tool to improve focus and emotional regulation in high-pressure environments.”
Usage
The verb is intransitive when describing the act of mental exercise, but can be transitive when meaning to plan or consider something deeply.
Pitfall
I am meditating about my breath
I am meditating on my breath
When focusing on a specific object or thought, the verb typically takes the preposition 'on' rather than 'about'.
Etymology
First attested in 1560; borrowed from Latin meditātus, perfect active participle of meditor (“to think or reflect upon, consider, design, purpose, intend”) (see -ate (verb-forming suffix) and -ate (adjective-forming suffix)), morphologically as if frequentative of medeor (“to heal, to cure, to remedy”); in sense and in form near to Ancient Greek μελετάω (meletáō, “to care for, attend to, study, practise, etc.”). Participial usage up until Early Modern English.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Word family
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englishreference.com/q/meditate