uncomprehendedly
Language: English
Part of speech: adv
Forms: form: more uncomprehendedly
form: most uncomprehendedly
Etymology: From uncomprehended + -ly.
Senses: examples: text: At 12.55, Marsh and Pearce, accompanied by a driver, horse, and buggy, left Oakville. A mile outside in the heart of the storm Pearce faltered a second. Marsh dropped into the road beside him. “Better quit it,” he advised. Pearce, his face livid with the fierce pounding of the storm, stared at him uncomprehendedly a second. Then his numbed senses gathered the import of the advice.
ref: 1908 January 24, “Pearce Battles Blizzard and Makes Hamilton-Toronto Run […]”, in The Toronto Daily Star, 16th year, Toronto, Ont., →ISSN, →OCLC, page 12, column 4:
text: “Pardon me,” said a gentle voice at his elbow, “but I’m afraid you’ve lost something?” […] / “Madam?” the gray man spoke uncomprehendedly. / “You have lost something, haven’t you?”
ref: 1912 July 1, Helen F. Brennan, “The Evening Story: An Affair of ‘Honor’”, in The Duluth Herald, volume XXX, number 71, Duluth, Minn., →OCLC, page 10, column 3:
text: “Tail shaft gone?” cried the captain. / “Like a carrot,” was the second mate’s answer. / He was a man of slow wits in all things unconnected with his trade, and he stared uncomprehendedly at the skipper’s laugh.
ref: 1913 September 28, Perceval Gibbon, “The Mate of the ‘Gatwick’”, in The Kansas City Star, volume 34, number 11, Kansas City, Mo., →ISSN, →OCLC, page 12O, column 7:
text: When given her bill at the end of the day’s ride by the driver who felt that he had a mighty queer customer in the rear seat, she looked at it uncomprehendedly, he told the authorities. “Don’t you have any money,” he is reported to have asked her.
ref: 1927 October 1, “Takes Lengthy Taxi Ride; Is in Hospital: Pretty Woman Lost in Ventura but Was Taken Home”, in Ventura Free Press, volume 51, number 53, Ventura, Calif., →OCLC, page 1, column 5:
text: The prison cavalcade drew to a halt at Randolph, about half way to the state farm here. Pomeroy was taken out of the car. He seemed unconcerned as a guard led hmi^([sic]) to a confectionery store nearby. “What’ll you have to drink, grandpa?” the guard asked. “Grandpa,” Pomeroy’s nom de plume when writing poetry for the Charleston prison magazine, pushed his grap cap back on his head and glanced uncomprehendedly at the guard.
ref: 1929 August 2, “‘Where Did the Horses Go?’ Asks Man Taken from Cells for First Time in 53 Years”, in Appeal-Democrat, volume 136 (Appeal)/XLIV (Democrat), number 27, Marysville, Calif., →OCLC, page 5, column 1:
text: In an adjoining room Mooney’s 84-year-old mother, in the care of her daughter, Anna, waited uncomprehendedly the reading of the decision that once again blasted her son’s hopes for exoneration and freedom.
ref: 1932 April 22, “Governor Rolph Denies Plea for Mooney Freedom”, in The Gettysburg Times, Gettysburg, Pa., →OCLC, page 1, column 4:
text: What would they show? So far Lucile had looked at them uncomprehendedly, but surely she was bound to guess before long. […] “It was about here that you dropped your suitcase, was it?” / No good. It was all over. The invalid looked at him uncomprehendedly. He wanted to get away.
ref: 1951, Georges Simenon, translated by Geoffrey Sainsbury, “The Gendarme’s Report”, in The Window Over the Way, London: Routledge & Kegan Paul Limited […], →OCLC, section VIII, pages 258 and 263:
text: African Evangelist Frances Adego had just preached a message of salvation through the blood of Jesus Christ to villagers in Soroti, Uganda. When the people did not respond, he pled with them to accept Jesus. They only stared at him uncomprehendedly.
ref: 1985, Robert Walker, “What Happens in a Good Lead?”, in Leads and Story Openings, Carol Stream, Ill.: Creation House, →ISBN, page 27:
text: […] I looked in the mirror to confirm I was awake, standing up and still existed. […] I gazed uncomprehendedly at the unfinished backside of the wall of the next room and wondered what had happened to my face. It wasn’t there. Shock. Trauma. Fright.
ref: 1987 June 17, Vic Bubbett, “Rambling Reflections: When a ‘red telephone call’ comes in, it can change one’s life forever and ever”, in The Dothan Progress, volume 16, number 48, Dothan, Ala., →OCLC, page 3-A, column 3:
text: Diana watched, smiling. “Ah, dot makes me a leetle da hot. Now, da udder vay.” We looked uncomprehendedly at her. “Dummkopf! Da udder vay. He licks on your dinkalink.”
ref: 1989, Charles Nelson, “May 1968”, in Panthers in the Skins of Men, Secaucus, N.J.: Meadowland Books, →ISBN, page 182:
text: The Anglo audience was sitting stunned, literally with open jaws, totally astounded, uncomprehending. Americans did not get the abstract passion of the play. The salsa, by Tito Puente, Puerto Rico flags flying alone. The Puerto Ricans letting out cries of pride and joy at these expressions of Puertorriqueñísimo. The Anglos were withdrawn uncomprehendedly with their racism.
ref: 1998, Louise Cripps, “If Puerto Rico Became the 51st State from the Island Viewpoint”, in Should Puerto Rico Become the 51st State?, Dorado, P.R.: Borinquen Books, →OCLC, page 193:
text: I remember fondly an old Czech girlfriend who visited France with me and who at the end of the evening looked at me aghast, uncomprehendedly, saying “How could you talk about food for 5 hours? How?” Yes, for the Czechs this would seem incredible but it wasn’t because of food that we boistrously^([sic]) blurted out our beliefs. It was due to the IDEA of food.
ref: 1997 June 14, David Deubelbeiss, Too Long in Exile: A Poet’s Journal 1997 - 98, I’m Press, published 2011, page 43:
text: On a day like today / seeing a young cow / tethered / in an urban lane / my heart cracks open / and a tear falls / soundlessly / uncomprehendedly / and washes my soul
ref: 2010 June, D. Joan Thomas, “Only believe”, in The Lighthouse: A Newsletter for Friends of the Church, Victoria, B.C.: Church of Truth, Community of Conscious Living, page 10:
text: When she received an A on the first midterm, she stared at it uncomprehendedly, and then exclaimed “This is a mistake!”
ref: 2014 April 10, Steven Campbell, “If your tell your brain you can't, you won't”, in The Community Voice, Rohnert Park, Calif., →OCLC, archived from the original on 18 Apr 2025:
synonyms: uncomprehendingly
glosses: With a lack of comprehension.
examples: text: Practically the whole race is in a frenzied excitement over what prophecy long since announced and what history uncomprehendedly recorded.
ref: 1936 May 25, R. G. Williams, “A New Order”, in Charles B. Welch, editor, The Tacoma News Tribune, 53rd year, number 208, Tacoma, Wash., →OCLC, “News Tribune’s Letter Box […]” section, page 10, column 4:
text: Laforgue zealously reads his Scriptures, talks fervently but uncomprehendedly, and becomes prey to yearnings of the flesh as he watches Daniel and Annuka falling in love and coupling with the reluctant consent of Chomina.
ref: 1991, John Simon, “Despair Not: Black Robe; Let Him Have It”, in John Simon on Film: Criticism, 1982–2001, New York, N.Y.: Applause Theatre & Cinema Books, published 2005, →ISBN, “Criticism from the 1990s” section, page 310:
text: Thus even the institutional medium of Corporations(cf. Elements of the Philosophy of Right, pr.252, 253, 244) in the ethical life of the society in this regard can be said to be designed to ensure that complex far-flung economic factors would not uncomprehendedly sway over people’s activities and lives in order not to limit their freedom and activity in their vocational field of interest […]
ref: 2013 October, Ayşen Furtun, “Amidst the Aspiration versus Exposition of ‘Rational-Actual’ Dichotomy versus Unity in Hegelian Terminology”, in International Journal of Business and Social Science, volume 4, number 13, Radford, Va.: Center for Promoting Ideas, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 286:
glosses: In a manner that is not comprehended.
Related terms: comprehendedly