Considered

How to spell considered

10 letters · 3 syllables

How to pronounce considered

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does considered mean?

1. verbThought about something carefully, or regarded it in a particular way, in the past.
2. adjectiveCarefully thought out and based on sound reasoning.

Considered in a sentence

• verb

  She considered every option before signing the contract.

• adjective

  Her considered response calmed the worried investors.

• verb

  The committee considered his proposal for several weeks.

• adjective

  The report offered a considered analysis of the housing market.

Where does considered come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This word descends from the Latin verb considerare, which literally meant 'to observe the stars closely', built from con- (a thoroughly, completely intensifier) and sidus, the Latin word for a star or constellation. In the ancient world watching the stars was a way of seeking guidance and weighing a decision, so the verb naturally drifted from astronomy toward the sense of looking at something carefully and thinking it through. It travelled into English through Old French considerer in the 1300s, keeping that core meaning of examining an idea with attention. The same starry root sits inside 'sidereal' (relating to the stars), a useful reminder of where the spelling comes from. The form 'considered' is simply the past tense and past participle, and it also works as an adjective meaning carefully thought out, as in 'a considered opinion'.

How the word is built

• con- (thoroughly)
• sider (from Latin sidus: star)
• -ed (past tense / adjective suffix)