From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishponderpon‧der /ˈpɒndə $ ˈpɑːndər/ ●○○ verb [intransitive, transitive] formalTHINK ABOUT to spend time thinking carefully and seriously about a problem, a difficult question, or something that has happened SYN consider He continued to ponder the problem as he walked home.ponder on/over/about The university board is still pondering over the matter.ponder how/what/whether Jay stood still for a moment, pondering whether to go or not.► see thesaurus at think→ See Verb table
Examples from the Corpus
ponder• I pondered pouring the cappuccinos on the floor and sweeping out but figured he might just shoot me in the foot.• The purpose, I think, is to ponder questions important to human experience.• Webber has been pondering retirement since June.• Strange, Mowbray pondered, that Adam had not come to see them this Christmas.• We would do well to ponder the anguish of those turbulent years.• I was pondering this alternative when my mind was made up for me by a passing freighter.• She was pondering this in a panic, when she heard the scream of the children and the sound of feet running.• His mind always at work, Alvin pondered ways to make such programs more appealing to unsophisticated audiences.ponder how/what/whether• But while all the praise has been coming his way, he still ponders whether he'd do it again.• Quinn paused for a moment to ponder what he was doing.• I kept pondering how kinglets, no larger than the end of my finger, could survive in this cold.• It is interesting to ponder how the values of planners are formulated with respect to determining aesthetic criteria for decision-making.• But before jumping to that conclusion it is worth pondering whether the weed is more resistant to husbandry practice rather than the herbicide.• While workers worried about their jobs, customers pondered whether they would remain with the bank.• Authorities ponder whether to charge the driver.• His present-day detractors might well ponder what would have happened to the country had he died.Origin ponder (1300-1400) Old French ponderer “to weigh”, from Latin ponderare, from pondus “weight” 