List of 426 Sets of Synonyms - How they Differ - Total of 2307 Words - 292

SYNONYMS: ponder, meditate, deliberate, ruminate, mull, muse.
These verbs mean to consider something carefully and at length.

To ponder is to weigh in the mind with painstaking thoroughness and care: He spent a long time pondering the offer.
Meditate implies serious consideration, as of undertaking a course of action or of implementing a plan; the term can also denote engagement in deep reflection: He left her presence to meditate upon revenge.
To deliberate is to think attentively and usually slowly, as about a choice or decision to be made: The jury deliberated for two days before returning a verdict.
Ruminate and mull imply turning a matter over and over again in the mind: The old warrior king was ruminating on his gloomy fortunes. I sat mulling over my problem without finding a solution.
To muse is to be absorbed in one's thoughts; the word often connotes an abstracted quality: He mused at what might have happened.