Meaning of think in English

think

verb

/θɪŋk/ us

/θɪŋk/

thought | thought

think verb (CONSIDER)

Add to word list Add to word list

A1 [ I or T ]

to believe something or have an opinion or idea:

[ + (that) ] I think (that) I've met you before.

I don't think Emma will get the job.

"Do you think (that) you could get me some stamps while you're in town?"

[ + to infinitive ] He was thought to have boarded the plane in New York.

What did you think of the film?

Salmon used to be thought of as expensive/a luxury.

What do you think about the latest plans for improving the underground system?

I think it is important to learn English.

not think much of sb/sth

to have a low opinion of someone or something:

I didn't think much of her latest book.

B2 [ I ]

to consider a person's needs or wishes:

She's always thinking of others.

More examplesFewer examples

Some people think the Church shouldn't interfere in politics.
Circle the answer you think is correct.
How much liquid do you think this bottle contains?
I'm sure my boss thinks I've been neglecting my duties recently.
The soldiers lined us up against a wall and I thought they were going to shoot us.

SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases

Thinking and contemplating

See more results »

You can also find related words, phrases, and synonyms in the topics:

Not liking

Analysing and evaluating

Kind & thoughtful

think verb (DECIDE)

to use the brain to decide to do something:

[ + of+ -ing verb ] I'm thinking of taking up running.

[ + (that) ] I think (that) I'll go swimming after lunch.

I'm thinking about buying a new car.

SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases

Thinking and contemplating

See more results »

think verb (REASON)

B1 [ I ]

to use the brain to plan something, solve a problem, understand a situation, etc.:

What are you thinking, Peter?

He just does these things without thinking and he gets himself into trouble.

You think too much - that's your problem.

I'm sorry I forgot to mention your name. I just wasn't thinking.

think long and hard (also think twice)

to think very carefully about something:

Think long and hard before you make any important decisions.

I know it's exciting, but you should think twice before you spend that much money on a vacation.

think aloud UK (US think out loud)

to automatically say what you are thinking:

"What did you say?" "Oh, nothing, I was just thinking aloud."

More examplesFewer examples

Whatever she's thinking, she never lets it show.
He admits that he acted without thinking.
He paused and thought for a moment.
We thought long and hard before sending the children away to school.
Some people say that playing classical music while you work helps you think - but I find it only distracts me.

SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases

Thinking and contemplating

See more results »

You can also find related words, phrases, and synonyms in the topics:

Saying & uttering

think verb (REMEMBER)

B1 [ I usually + adv/prep ]

to remember or imagine:

I was just thinking about you when you called.

She was so busy she didn't think to tell me about it.

More examplesFewer examples

Did you think to give her your phone number?
I've been thinking about my grandmother a lot recently.
Do you often think about the war?

SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases

Imagining and conceiving

See more results »

Grammar

Think

We can use think to talk about having an opinion or idea. In this case, we don’t usually use the continuous form: …

Idioms

couldn't think
I can't think
I think not
I thought as much
not be thinking straight
not think twice
think again
think better of something
think big
think nothing of something

More idioms

think on your feet
think outside the box
to someone's way of thinking
who would have thought it?

Phrasal verbs

think ahead
think back
think for yourself
think of something
think of something/someone
think of/about someone/something
think something out
think something over
think something through
think something up

think

noun

/θɪŋk/ us

/θɪŋk/

have a think UK

to consider something for some time:

Let me have a think about it before I decide.

Have a think over the weekend and tell me what you've decided.

SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases

Thinking and contemplating

See more results »

Idiom

have another think coming

(Definition of think from the Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary & Thesaurus © Cambridge University Press)

think | American Dictionary

think

verb

/θɪŋk/

past tense and past participle thought us/θɔt/

think verb (HAVE OPINION)

Add to word list Add to word list

[ I/T ]

to have or to form an opinion or idea about something:

[ T ] "Do you think this is the right address?" "I don’t think so."

[ I ] It doesn’t make much sense when you think about it.

[ I/T ] Cloning animals has happened sooner than anyone thought (it would).

[ T ] I always thought he was a bit weird.

[ I ] What do you think of my new hat?

[ I ] I’ll always think of him as someone I can rely on.

[ + (that) clause ] I think (that) I’d better go now.

I still think of myself as (= believe I am) her friend.

think verb (USE REASON)

[ I ]

to use your mind to understand matters, make judgments, and solve problems:

I’ll have to think about this.

She was thinking about running for the Senate.

I can’t think of anything to say right now.

think verb (REMEMBER)

[ I always + adv/prep ]

to remember or imagine:

I can’t stop thinking about her.

I can picture her, I just can’t think of her name.

Think back to the early days of the Civil War.

Idioms

not think much of someone/something
not think straight
think better of something
think for yourself
think long and hard
think nothing of something
think on your feet
think the world of someone/something
think twice

Phrasal verbs

think something over/through

think up something

(Definition of think from the Cambridge Academic Content Dictionary © Cambridge University Press)

think | Business English

think

verb [ I or T ]

/θɪŋk/ us

thought | thought

Add to word list Add to word list

to have a particular idea, belief or opinion:

think (that) Some analysts think that rates will continue to rise.

I think the figures speak for themselves.

Have you seen the new ad? What do you think?

to consider something in your mind:

He thought for a moment, and then agreed.

think about sth She was thinking about whether to take the job.

think big

to have plans to be very successful or powerful:

Even small companies need to think big.

think on your feet

to make a quick decision or give an answer quickly:

The ability to think on your feet is essential for this position.

think out of/outside the box

to think using your imagination and having new ideas instead of traditional or expected ones:

Thinking outside the box could be enough to put a business ahead of its competitors.

think twice

to think very carefully about something before taking a decision:

think twice about sth/about doing sth/before doing sth High fuel prices had caused car buyers to think twice about buying full-size sport utility vehicles.

Phrasal verbs

think sth of sth/sb
think sth out
think sth over

(Definition of think from the Cambridge Business English Dictionary © Cambridge University Press)

Examples of think

think

However, philosophers do think that our notion of wellbeing permits the rich account of the priority view that they offer.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

Have consumers pay the difference for costlier plans, if they think they provide better value.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

However, there is a sharp distinction between the mechanisms posited by repression and the processes thought to underlie ordinary forgetting.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

These spellings are thought to typify the phonetic stage.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

I understand that you think that this is your best purely scientific contribution.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

It is difficult to find a single refugee who thinks that they will be returning home any time in the near future.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

I think the ascetic world reinforced my feeling that they were important.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

In this commentary we raise two issues that we think are directly related to the theory's treatment of mental representations as emulations.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

Indeed, representations in the brain are not thought by visual neuroscientists to be point-by-point picture-like representations.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

We incline to think that the latter change, in contrast to the former, represents a cognitive improvement in our condition.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

Some participants reported that the threat was current and ongoing, while others did not think it would happen for over 6 months.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

It helps me to think things through systematically and adopt resolve to take action, and it reminds me of my own past thinking.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

What if past thought were not always surpassed thought?

From the Cambridge English Corpus

Traditionally, lexical contexts and sentential contexts were thought to play very different roles in word recognition, each applying at a separate stage.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

He stressed that seeing and thinking express the freedom and the causality behind all things.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

These examples are from corpora and from sources on the web. Any opinions in the examples do not represent the opinion of the Cambridge Dictionary editors or of Cambridge University Press or its licensors.

What is the pronunciation of think?

Translations of think

in Chinese (Traditional)

考慮, 相信, 覺得…

Meaning of think in English

think verb (CONSIDER)

think verb (DECIDE)

think verb (REASON)

think verb (REMEMBER)

Grammar

Idioms

Phrasal verbs

Idiom

think | American Dictionary

think verb (HAVE OPINION)

think verb (USE REASON)

think verb (REMEMBER)

Idioms

Phrasal verbs

think | Business English

Phrasal verbs

Examples of think

Translations of think

Browse

Learn more with +Plus

Learn more with +Plus