What is "thought"

Think \Think\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Thought; p. pr. & vb. n. Thinking.] [OE. thinken, properly, to seem, from AS. [thorn]yncean (cf. Methinks), but confounded with OE. thenken to think, fr. AS. [thorn]encean (imp. [thorn][=o]hte); akin to D. denken, dunken, OS. thenkian, thunkian, G. denken, d["u]nken, Icel. [thorn]ekkja to perceive, to know, [thorn]ykkja to seem, Goth. [thorn]agkjan, [thorn]aggkjan, to think, [thorn]ygkjan to think, to seem, OL. tongere to know. Cf. Thank, Thought.]

1. To seem or appear; -- used chiefly in the expressions methinketh or methinks, and methought.

   Note: These are genuine Anglo-Saxon expressions, equivalent to it seems to me, it seemed to me. In these expressions me is in the dative case.

2. To employ any of the intellectual powers except that of simple perception through the senses; to exercise the higher intellectual faculties.

   For that I am I know, because I think.
   --Dryden.

3. Specifically: (a) To call anything to mind; to remember; as, I would have sent the books, but I did not think of it. Well thought upon; I have it here. --Shak. (b) To reflect upon any subject; to muse; to meditate; to ponder; to consider; to deliberate. And when he thought thereon, he wept. --Mark xiv. 72. He thought within himself, saying, What shall I do, because I have no room where to bestow my fruits? --Luke xii. 17. (c) To form an opinion by reasoning; to judge; to conclude; to believe; as, I think it will rain to-morrow. Let them marry to whom they think best. --Num. xxxvi. 6. (d) To purpose; to intend; to design; to mean. I thought to promote thee unto great honor. --Num. xxiv. 1

   1. Thou thought'st to help me.
      --Shak. (e) To presume; to venture.

      Think not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham to our father.
      --Matt. iii. 9.

      Note: To think, in a philosophical use as yet somewhat limited, designates the higher intellectual acts, the acts pre["e]minently rational; to judge; to compare; to reason. Thinking is employed by Hamilton as ``comprehending all our collective energies.'' It is defined by Mansel as ``the act of knowing or judging by means of concepts,''by Lotze as ``the reaction of the mind on the material supplied by external influences.'' See Thought.

      To think better of. See under Better.

      To think much of, or To think well of, to hold in esteem; to esteem highly.

      Syn: To expect; guess; cogitate; reflect; ponder; contemplate; meditate; muse; imagine; suppose; believe. See Expect, Guess.

Thought \Thought\, imp. & p. p. of Think.

Thought \Thought\, n. [OE. [thorn]oght, [thorn]ouht, AS. [thorn][=o]ht, ge[thorn][=o]ht, fr. [thorn]encean to think; akin to D. gedachte thought, MHG. d[=a]ht, ged[=a]ht, Icel.

1. The act of thinking; the exercise of the mind in any of its higher forms; reflection; cogitation.

   Thought can not be superadded to matter, so as in any sense to render it true that matter can become cogitative.
   --Dr. T. Dwight.

2. Meditation; serious consideration.

   Pride, of all others the most dangerous fault, Proceeds from want of sense or want of thought.
   --Roscommon.

3. That which is thought; an idea; a mental conception, whether an opinion, judgment, fancy, purpose, or intention.

   Thus Bethel spoke, who always speaks his thought.
   --Pope.

   Why do you keep alone, . . . Using those thoughts which should indeed have died With them they think on?
   --Shak.

   Thoughts come crowding in so fast upon me, that my only difficulty is to choose or to reject.
   --Dryden.

   All their thoughts are against me for evil.
   --Ps. lvi. 5.

4. Solicitude; anxious care; concern.

   Hawis was put in trouble, and died with thought and anguish before his business came to an end.
   --Bacon.

   Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink.
   --Matt. vi. 2

5. 5. A small degree or quantity; a trifle; as, a thought longer; a thought better. [Colloq.]

   If the hair were a thought browner.
   --Shak.

   Note: Thought, in philosophical usage now somewhat current, denotes the capacity for, or the exercise of, the very highest intellectual functions, especially those usually comprehended under judgment.

   This [faculty], to which I gave the name of the ``elaborative faculty,'' -- the faculty of relations or comparison, -- constitutes what is properly denominated thought.
   --Sir W. Hamilton.

   Syn: Idea; conception; imagination; fancy; conceit; notion; supposition; reflection; consideration; meditation; contemplation; cogitation; deliberation.

Old English þoht, geþoht "process of thinking, a thought; compassion," from stem of þencan "to conceive of in the mind, consider" (see think). Cognate with the second element in German Gedächtnis "memory," Andacht "attention, devotion," Bedacht "consideration, deliberation." Second thought "later consideration" is recorded from 1640s. Thought-crime is from "Nineteen Eighty-Four" (1949); thought police is attested from 1945, originally in reference to war-time Japanese Special Higher Police (Tokubetsu Koto Keisatsu).

n. form created in the mind, rather than the forms perceived through the five senses; an instance of thinking. vb. (en-pastthink)

1. n. an instance of deliberate thinking; "I need to give it a good think"

2. [also: thought]

1. n. the content of cognition; the main thing you are thinking about; "it was not a good idea"; "the thought never entered my mind" [syn: idea]

2. the process of thinking (especially thinking carefully); "thinking always made him frown"; "she paused for thought" [syn: thinking, cerebration, intellection, mentation]

3. the organized beliefs of a period or group or individual; "19th century thought"; "Darwinian thought"

4. a personal belief or judgment that is not founded on proof or certainty; "my opinion differs from yours"; "what are your thoughts on Haiti?" [syn: opinion, sentiment, persuasion, view]

1. v. judge or regard; look upon; judge; "I think he is very smart"; "I believe her to be very smart"; "I think that he is her boyfriend"; "The racist conceives such people to be inferior" [syn: believe, consider, conceive]

2. expect, believe, or suppose; "I imagine she earned a lot of money with her new novel"; "I thought to find her in a bad state"; "he didn't think to find her in the kitchen"; "I guess she is angry at me for standing her up" [syn: opine, suppose, imagine, reckon, guess]

3. use or exercise the mind or one's power of reason in order to make inferences, decisions, or arrive at a solution or judgments; "I've been thinking all day and getting nowhere" [syn: cogitate, cerebrate]

4. recall knowledge from memory; have a recollection; "I can't remember saying any such thing"; "I can't think what her last name was"; "can you remember her phone number?"; "Do you remember that he once loved you?"; "call up memories" [syn: remember, retrieve, recall, call back, call up, recollect] [ant: forget]

5. imagine or visualize; "Just think--you could be rich one day!"; "Think what a scene it must have been!"

6. focus one's attention on a certain state; "Think big"; "think thin"

7. have in mind as a purpose; "I mean no harm"; "I only meant to help you"; "She didn't think to harm me"; "We thought to return early that night" [syn: intend, mean]

8. decide by pondering, reasoning, or reflecting; "Can you think what to do next?"

9. ponder; reflect on, or reason about; "Think the matter through"; "Think how hard life in Russia must be these days"

10. dispose the mind in a certain way; "Do you really think so?"

11. have or formulate in the mind; "think good thoughts"

12. be capable of conscious thought; "Man is the only creature that thinks"

13. bring into a given condition by mental preoccupation; "She thought herself into a state of panic over the final exam"

14. [also: thought]

See think

Thought can refer to the ideas or arrangements of ideas that result from thinking, the act of producing thoughts, or the process of producing thoughts. Although thought is a fundamental human activity familiar to everyone, there is no generally accepted agreement as to what thought is or how it is created. Thoughts may or may not arise in the mind from the product of subconscious brain processing.

Because thought underlies many human actions and interactions, understanding its physical and metaphysical origins, processes, and effects has been a longstanding goal of many academic disciplines including psychology, neuroscience, philosophy, artificial intelligence, biology, sociology and cognitive science.

Thinking allows humans to make sense of, interpret, represent or model the world they experience, and to make predictions about that world. It is therefore helpful to an organism with needs, objectives, and desires as it makes plans or otherwise attempts to accomplish those goals.

Thought is a mental process which allows beings to be conscious, make decisions, imagine and, in general, operate on symbols in a rational or irrational manner. It is an element/instance of thinking and is used as its synonym.

Thought may refer to:

• In philosophy, thought is also a synonym for idea
• School of thought, a collections of ideas that result from the adoption of a particular paradigm
• Thought, the short name of Thought: Fordham University Quarterly, a publication of Fordham University
• Thought: A Journal of Philosophy
• "Thought", in Gottlob Frege's theory of meaning, "something for which the question of truth can arise at all"
• Thought (Myel), a short story by Leonid Andreyev