Wise, modest, contemplative, studious, never clamorous, even if a bit stubborn, he always avoided causing distress to anyone.
Source: tatoeba (4300865)
Contemplative
/kənˈtɛmplətɪv/
Synonyms for "contemplative" (107 found)
Ranked by relevance and common usage.
Closest matches (22)
Adjective(5 words)
Adjective(4 words)
Noun(4 words)
Strong matches (32)
Adjective(8 words)
Adjective(5 words)
Verb(1 words)
Noun(3 words)
Related words (53)
Adjective(14 words)
nunphilosopherphilosophical conceptpondererponderingquietistreflective actionreflective journalreflective reviewreflective thinkingreligiousruminativethinkerthoughtful
Verb(1 words)
Noun(5 words)
Choosing the right synonym
- Closest matches in this entry: meditative, pensive, reflective, absorbed, attentive.
- Sentence evidence is available for contemplative, so synonym choice can be checked against real usage rather than a flat word list.
- Ranking signals come from wordnet, opengloss, derived_reverse, wiktionary, and related lexical sources.
Synonym selection checklist
- Match the part of speech before comparing meanings.
- Check whether the synonym changes intensity, formality, or emotional tone.
- Read the replacement inside the full sentence, not just beside "contemplative".
- Prefer the clearest word over the most unusual word when writing for speed or comprehension.
When not to replace "contemplative"
Keep "contemplative" when the sentence already sounds natural, when a synonym would add unintended emphasis, or when readers need the most familiar wording. A synonym should clarify or sharpen the message, not simply make the sentence look more varied.
If two options seem close, choose the one that best matches the audience and purpose of the sentence.
Replacement workflow
1. Preserve meaning
Choose a synonym only if it keeps the core idea of "contemplative" intact in the sentence you are editing.
2. Tune tone
Check whether the replacement sounds more formal, casual, emotional, technical, or forceful than the original word.
3. Re-read context
Read the full sentence after the swap. Keep the synonym only when the sentence becomes clearer or more precise.
Review note: Synonym lists are ranked with lexical data and reviewed for practical writing value. Use the comparison notes, sentence evidence, and source labels together; a high-ranking synonym can still be wrong when the audience, register, or grammar changes.
Final fit check
After choosing a replacement for "contemplative", read the sentence once for meaning and once for rhythm. The best synonym should feel natural in the full sentence, not only accurate in a word list.
If the synonym makes the sentence slower, vaguer, or more dramatic than intended, keep "contemplative" or choose a simpler alternative from the closest-match group.
Related word relations
OpenGloss and ConceptNet supply richer edges like generalizations, collocations, and derivations.
More general
11 entriesMore specific
13 entriesabbotcontemplative essayfriarintrospective prosemeditativemeditative musicmuserpensivephilosopherquietist poetryreflectivereflective poetrythinker
Collocations
11 entriescontemplative approachcontemplative inquirycontemplative lifecontemplative literaturecontemplative mindcontemplative moodcontemplative pedagogycontemplative practicecontemplative silencecontemplative stancecontemplative tradition
Inflections
3 entriesDerivations
7 entriessimilar
1 entriesSample sentences
15 total sentences available.
Inwardly the Second Men differed from the earlier species in that they had shed most of those primitive relics which had hampered the First Men more than was realized. Not only were they free of appendix, tonsils and other useless excrescences, but also their whole structure was more firmly knit into unity. Their chemical organization was such that their tissues were kept in better repair. Their teeth, though proportionately small and few, were almost completely immune from caries. Such was their glandular equipment that puberty did not begin till twenty; and not till they were fifty did they reach maturity. At about one hundred and ninety their powers began to fail, and after a few years of contemplative retirement they almost invariably died before true senility could begin.
Source: tatoeba (8855497)
Many textbooks on Japanese claim that the language has verbal tenses, namely, the past and the non-past, but many academics proclaim that Japanese has really verbal aspects, not tenses, namely the perfective and imperfective aspects. In this way, Tagalog is more like Japanese, with its complete, progressive, and contemplative as main aspects.
Source: tatoeba (10312029)
After finishing up at the university, he said to hell with everything and dedicated himself to a contemplative life.
Source: tatoeba (10573634)
Showing 4 of 15 available sentences.
Common questions
What are the closest synonyms for "contemplative"?
Closest matches include meditative, pensive, reflective, absorbed, attentive.
How should I check whether a synonym fits "contemplative"?
Compare the replacement against real sentence context. This entry includes sample sentences so you can check tone, grammar, and meaning before swapping words.