cognitive

adjective

cog·​ni·​tive ˈkäg-nə-tiv How to pronounce cognitive (audio)
Synonyms of cognitive
1
: of, relating to, being, or involving conscious intellectual activity (such as thinking, reasoning, or remembering)
cognitive development
Mild cognitive impairment … involves a decline in mental acuity that is noticeable but not severe enough to be diagnosed as dementia.—Nicholas Bakalar
… researchers kept people just slightly sleep deprived … and watched the subjects' performance on cognitive tests plummet.—James Hamblin
2
philosophy : based on or capable of being reduced to empirical factual knowledge
debate whether normative statements can be cognitive
cognitively adverb

Examples of cognitive in a Sentence

The best toys for toddlers engage their interests while developing their fine motor, gross motor, cognitive, and social skills. —Ashley Ziegler and Katrina Cossey, Parents, 12 Nov. 2024
Homo sapiens' survival is founded in their filling an evolutionary niche referred to as the cognitive niche. —Daniel Grassam, Skeptical Inquirer, July/August 2001
Researchers are debating whether heading balls can dent the cognitive skills of young soccer players for life. —Lisa McLaughlin, Time, 5 June 2000
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
To account for this potential bias, researchers estimated that families who noticed cognitive symptoms were about five times more likely to donate a brain and adjusted their analysis accordingly. — ABC News, 28 Oct. 2026 Even if people — fingers crossed — remain an engine of change in the AI world, there are persistent worries about how the human equation will change with machines taking on more of the cognitive load. — Evan Clark, Footwear News, 28 Oct. 2026 The team found that people with cognitive symptoms were about five times more likely to donate their brain. — Jackie Flynn Mogensen, Scientific American, 28 Oct. 2026 That includes skills like driving a car or balancing a checkbook, where a person must use both cognitive function and motor function simultaneously. — News Editor, CBS News, 28 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for cognitive

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Medieval Latin cognitīvus "concerned with knowing," from Latin cognitus, past participle of cognōscere "to get to know, acquire knowledge of" + -īvus -ive — more at cognition

First Known Use

1586, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of cognitive was in 1586

Phrases Containing cognitive

Rhymes for cognitive

See All Rhymes for cognitive

Browse Nearby Words

cognitional
cognitive
cognitive behavioral therapy
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Cognitive.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cognitive. Accessed 1 Nov. 2026.

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Kids Definition

cognitive

adjective
cog·​ni·​tive ˈkäg-nət-iv How to pronounce cognitive (audio)
: of, relating to, or being conscious mental activities (as thinking, reasoning, remembering, imagining, learning words, and using language)

Medical Definition

cognitive

adjective
cog·​ni·​tive ˈkäg-nət-iv How to pronounce cognitive (audio)
: of, relating to, or being conscious intellectual activity (as thinking, reasoning, remembering, imagining, or learning words)
the cognitive elements of perception—C. H. Hamburg
cognitively adverb

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