Meanings
plural cognitions
- countableuncountableThe process of knowing, of acquiring knowledge and understanding through thought and through the senses.
human cognition
5 more examples
social cognition
cognition research
Children develop cognition rapidly in their early years.
The study focused on animal cognition.
That all our Cognition begins with Experience, there is not any doubt; for how otherwise should the faculty of cognition be awakened into exercise, if this did not occur through objects which affect our senses, and partly of themselves produce representations, and partly bring our Understanding-capacity into action, to compare these, to connect, or to separate them, and in this way to work up the rude matter of sensible impressions into a cognition of objects, which is termed experience?
1838, Immanuel Kant, “Introduction. I. Of the Difference between Pure and Empirical Cognition.”, in [Francis Haywood], transl., Critick of Pure Reason […], London: William Pickering, →OCLC, page 3
Synonyms & antonyms
nounthe psychological result of perception and learning and reasoning
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- Proto-Indo-European*ḱe?
- Proto-Indo-European*ḱóm
- Proto-Italic*kom
- Proto-Italic*kom-
- Latincon-
- Proto-Indo-European*ǵneh₃-
- Proto-Indo-European*ǵn̥h₃sḱéti
- Proto-Italic*gnōskō
- Latingnōscō
- Latincognōscō
- Latincognitiō
- Middle Englishcognicioun
- Englishcognition
From Middle English cognicion, cognicioun from Latin cognitiō (“knowledge, perception, a judicial examination, trial”), from cognitus, past participle of cognoscere (“to know”), from co- (“together”) + *gnoscere, older form of noscere (“to know”); see know, and compare cognize, cognizance, cognizor, cognosce, connoisseur.
More words from Middle English, Latin
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Bulgarian позна́ние, зна́ние
- позна́ние (poznánie)process of knowing
- зна́ние (znánie)process of knowing
Catalan cognició
- cognicióprocess of knowing
Chinese Mandarin 認知 /认知, 認識 /认识
- 認知 /认知 (rènzhī)process of knowing
- 認識 /认识 (rènshi)process of knowing
Danish kognition, erkendelse
- kognitionprocess of knowing
- erkendelseprocess of knowing
Finnish kognitio, tajunta
- kognitioprocess of knowing
- tajuntaprocess of knowing
French connaissance
- connaissanceprocess of knowing
German Kognition, Erkenntnis
- Kognitionprocess of knowing
- Erkenntnisprocess of knowing
Hebrew הכרה
- הכרה (hakara)process of knowing
Hindi संज्ञान, बोध
- संज्ञान (sañjñān)process of knowing
- बोध (bodh)process of knowing
Hungarian megismerés
- megismerésprocess of knowing
Italian conoscenza
- conoscenzaprocess of knowing
Japanese 認知
- 認知 (ninchi)process of knowing
Korean 인지
- 인지 (inji)process of knowing
Lithuanian pažinimas
- pažinimasprocess of knowing
Māori hirikapo
- hirikapoprocess of knowing
Polish poznanie, percepcja
- poznanieprocess of knowing
- percepcjaprocess of knowing
Portuguese cognição
- cogniçãoprocess of knowing
Punjabi ਸੰਗਿਆਨ
- ਸੰਗਿਆਨ (saṅgiāna)process of knowing
Russian позна́ние, восприя́тие
- позна́ние (poznánije)process of knowing
- восприя́тие (vosprijátije)process of knowing
Slovak poznávanie
- poznávanieprocess of knowing
Spanish cognición
- cogniciónprocess of knowing
Turkish biliş, sadınım
- bilişprocess of knowing
- sadınımprocess of knowing
Ukrainian пізна́ння
- пізна́ння (piznánnja)process of knowing
Vietnamese nhận thức
- nhận thứcprocess of knowing
Welsh gwybyddiaeth
- gwybyddiaethprocess of knowing
Rhymes & wordplay
Anagrams
Cite this entry
cognition. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/cognition
“cognition.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/cognition. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “cognition,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/cognition.
Source: cognition on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.