4. ruminate

I’ve been thinking…

~Livy, 2 March 2022

definition

ruminate [/ˈro͞oməˌnāt/]

verb. to think deeply about something

handwritten

extended definition

[used with an object]:

• to think deeply about, meditate on, ponder
• to “chew the cud,” as a ruminant (animal)

[used without an object]:

• to think deeply, meditate, ponder
• to chew again over and over

etymology

Latin: ruminatus past participle of ruminare “to chew the cud,” also “turn over in the mind,” from rumen (genitive ruminis) “gullet, throat” (word of uncertain origin) → 1530-40s, “to chew the cud”; of a person, “to turn over in the mind, muse, meditate, think again and again”

notes

• the noun form rumination has a particular usage in neuroscience, psychology, and psychiatry: “Rumination is a form of perseverative cognition that focuses on negative content, generally past and present, and results in emotional distress.” (Sansone and Sansone, 2012)
• ^ learning the above context is what prompted me to collect the word ruminate
• ^ see also the adjective ruminative (etymology: Latin ruminatio “act of meditating”) — expressing or involving deep thought

references

• definitions from Oxford Languages via Google’s English Dictionary and Dictionary.com; rumination domain usage from this publication in “Innovations in Clinical Neuroscience”
• etymology (word origin information) from Online Etymology Dictionary, or “etymonline” for short — thanks, Dr. G.; see also “rumen” in WordSense
• my favorite Latin dictionary: William Whitaker’s Words

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