Pick the common, formal, serious word "ponder" when you want to emphasize the weight or the seriousness of what people are thinking about.

Often, we talk about people pondering things. 
   "I pondered my options."
   "He took a few days to ponder the offer."
   "They endlessly pondered what went wrong." 
   "They pondered how safe that course of action might be."  
   "She stared at her desk, appearing to ponder its layers of graffiti."

We can also say that people ponder on something, or over something, as we'll see in the example below from "The Raven:" the speaker of that poem ponders over many volumes of books.

We can even just say that people are pondering, period. "He stared gloomily out the window, pondering, occasionally harrumphing."

Lastly, notice how the adjective "ponderous" doesn't often mean "deep in thought;" rather, it most often means "slow and heavy." So for example, you could talk about ponderous speeches and ceremonies, which are slow, serious, and boring; or about the ponderous movements of heavy trucks or enormous animals.

"Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered, weak and weary,
Over many a quaint and curious volume of forgotten lore..."
— Edgar Allan Poe, "The Raven," 1845

"A great anger filled King Aeëtes' heart as he listened... He said to himself, 'If these strangers had not eaten at my table I would kill them.' In silence he pondered what he should do, and a plan came to him."
— Edith Hamilton, Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes, 1942

has this page helped you understand "ponder"?

Awesome, I'm glad it helped!

Thanks for letting me know!
If you have any questions about this word, please message me at Liesl@HiloTutor.com.

study it:

Explain the meaning of "ponder" without saying "weigh" or "mull over."

try it out:

Fill in the blanks: "(Someone) stayed awake pondering (something)."

Example 1: "I stayed awake pondering how to solve the problem."

Example 2: "Jean Valjean stays awake all night, pondering his moral dilemma."

Example 3: "Fujiko had stayed awake pondering ways to extricate herself from this situation."
— David Guterson, Snow Falling on Cedars, 1994

If you like, use this space to write. (To save your work, copy and paste it into an email or a document.)

before you review, play:

Try to spend 20 seconds or more on the game below. Don’t skip straight to the review—first, let your working memory empty out.

This month, our game is Botched Songs!

Check out the botched lyrics to a holiday song, and see if you can give me the botched title. It'll include a form of a word we've studied before.

For example, if the real song is "Jingle Bell Rock," then the botched one might be "Jingle Quell Rock." Or if the real song is "It's Beginning To Look a Lot Like Christmas," then the botched one might be "It's Beginning To Look a Lot Like a Chrysalis."

If you need some clues, highlight them to reveal them. And to see the answer, scroll all the way down. Your answer might be different than mine but just as good. Enjoy!

Try this one today:

You better watch out, 
You better not buy,
Better not browse,
That price is too high.
   —from "Santa Claus is Coming To _____"

Clue 1: The word in the blank means… to cheat people, as if violently scooping away their money

Clue 2: The word in the blank starts with the letter… G

Clue 3: The word in the blank sounds like… the word "town," but it doesn't rhyme with it exactly; it's just assonant. Change both of the consonant sounds in "town:" change the "t" and the "n."

review this word:

1. A near opposite of PONDER could be

A. INVEST or PAY FOR.
B. GLADDEN or CHEER UP.
C. DISMISS or LAUGH OFF.

2. In "Jaynestown," an episode of Firefly, as Mal and his crew ponder _____, Mal says, "_____."

A. due to the ship's oxygen running out .. She ain't goin' down. She ain't goin' anywhere
B. a crude and mysterious statue that resembles their crewmate .. This here's a spectacle might warrant a moment's consideration
C. away from the long arm of the Alliance .. Now we do it under the noses of twenty trained Alliance Feds. And that makes them look all manner of stupid

Answers to the review questions: 1. C 2. B Answer to the game question: "Santa Claus is Coming to Gouge"

a final word:

I hope you're enjoying Make Your Point. It's made with love. I'm Liesl Johnson, a reading and writing tutor on a mission to explore, illuminate, and celebrate words. From my blog: On vocabulary...       36 ways to study words.       Why we forget words, & how to remember them.       How to use sophisticated words without being awkward. On writing...       How to improve any sentence.       How to motivate our kids to write.       How to stop procrastinating and start writing.       How to bulk up your writing when you have to meet a word count. From my heart: a profound thanks to the generous patrons, donors, and sponsors that make it possible for me to write these emails. If you'd like to be a patron or a donor, please click here. If you'd like to be a sponsor and include your ad in an issue, please contact me at Liesl@HiloTutor.com. A disclaimer: When I write definitions, I use plain language and stick to the words' common, useful applications. If you're interested in authoritative and multiple definitions of words, I encourage you to check a dictionary. Also, because I'm American, I stick to American English when I share words' meanings, usage, and pronunciations; these elements sometimes vary across world Englishes.