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to prehend

to prehend

9.9
To take and hold something with a hand or tail
  • verb
  • /prɪˈhɛnd/
  • Archaic
translation icon : aprehender
  • The child prehended the toy with both hands, eager to play with it.

Examples

  • He reached out to prehend the falling book before it hit the ground.

  • Both form and feeling can be physically prehended by the next set of actual occasions as part of the objective data for their own self-constitution, but there is no entitative reality there except in our human imagination.

    Academic text (2005)

  • But the subject itself, as the original "feeler" of the feelings, is no longer there since subjectivity as such cannot be directly objectified or physically prehended.

    Academic text (2005)

  • She stipulated that for every created actual occasion, there is a fleeting moment of "enjoyment" after it has completed its process of self-constitution and before it perishes so as to become a "superject" for subsequent actual occasions to prehend.

    Academic text (2005)

  • The scientist designed an experiment to prehend the behavior of the animals in their natural habitat.

Synonyms

to grab
vsto prehend
∞ 1.0

To take hold of something quickly with your hand

describes seizing in general rather than emphasizing speed or suddenness
to seize
vsto prehend
277 3.2

To take control of a place or person quickly, often by force

focuses on simple hand or appendage seizing rather than forceful capture
to grip
vsto prehend
85 1.3

To hold something or someone tightly, often to keep them safe

covers ordinary seizing or grasping without stressing tightness or struggle
to grasp
vsto prehend
60 1.1

To take and hold something firmly with the hands

is about seizing or grasping in general, not specifically firm or tight hold
to take hold of
vsto prehend
21 3.1

Grab something or someone with your hands

is the general act of seizing or grasping with a hand or similar part
to take hold
vsto prehend
15 2.0

To grasp something with your hands

is the broader notion of taking or grasping with an appendage, not only deliberate acts
to hent
vsto prehend
  • Archaic
9.9

To take and hold something quickly

is the modern general term for taking or grasping with an appendage

Antonyms

to release
∞ 1.8

To let someone or something go free from being held

How Firm

to prehend
  • Archaic
9.9
to grab
∞ 1.0
to pick up
834 1.0
to touch
∞ 1.0

Surface Forms

prehend infinitive
preheeding present participle
prehends third person singular
prehended past
prehended past participle

Etymology

Prehend comes from the Latin prehendere, which means 'to seize' or 'to grasp' and is the same root behind words like apprehend and comprehend. Think of it as a strong 'grab' with the hand, which is why prehend can mean taking something physically.