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Definition of comprehension noun from the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary

comprehension

noun
 
/ˌkɒmprɪˈhenʃn/
 
/ˌkɑːmprɪˈhenʃn/
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  1. [uncountable] the ability to understand
    • speech and comprehension
    • beyond comprehension His behaviour was completely beyond comprehension (= impossible to understand).
    • She had no comprehension of what was involved.
    Extra Examples
    • He showed a total lack of comprehension.
    • She has no comprehension of the seriousness of the situation.
    • The level of violence used defies comprehension.
    • Why he can't do it himself is beyond my comprehension.
    • He looked at her with a total lack of comprehension.
    • The task requires a good comprehension of complex instructions.
    • There are exercises for checking comprehension.
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective
    • human
    verb + comprehension
    • have
    • defy
    • check
    comprehension + noun
    • skills
    preposition
    • beyond (somebody’s) comprehension
    • without comprehension
    phrases
    • a lack of comprehension
    See full entry
  2. [uncountable, countable] an exercise that trains students to understand a language
    • We did a listening comprehension.
    • a reading comprehension
    Topics Educationa2
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective
    • listening
    • reading
    verb + comprehension
    • do
    comprehension + noun
    • test
    • question
    • skills
    See full entry
  3. Word Originlate Middle English: from French compréhension or Latin comprehensio(n-), from the verb comprehendere ‘seize, comprise’, from com- ‘together’ + prehendere ‘grasp’.
See comprehension in the Oxford Advanced American DictionarySee comprehension in the Oxford Learner's Dictionary of Academic English
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