more than comprehension

USAGE SUMMARY

The phrase "more than comprehension" is correct and usable in written English.
It can be used to express that something exceeds the limits of understanding or knowledge. Example: "The complexity of the universe is more than comprehension for most people."

✓ Grammatically correct

Science

News & Media

Formal & Business

Human-verified examples from authoritative sources

Exact Expressions

1 human-written examples

Because language production and comprehension largely engage the same sets of neural regions, this pattern of preservation and decline raises interesting questions, such as why does neural change affect language production more than comprehension, and if neural compensation preserves comprehension, why does it not preserve language production (e.g., Shafto et al. 2007)?

Cerebral Cortex

Human-verified similar examples from authoritative sources

Similar Expressions

58 human-written examples

When the score is more important than comprehension, it encourages cheating.

The New York Times - Magazine

The same condition affects the research on endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs), creating more confusion than comprehension.

BioMed Research International

He's right that studying the humanities is about more than reading comprehension and memo writing.

The New York Times

The study is more than theoretical comprehension and output, but also serves for practical purposes, i.e. laying a scientific, factual basis for the social reform of ethnic minorities and providing opinions in the interest of the same ethnic minorities".

International Journal of Anthropology and Ethnology

Understanding as a learning objective needs more than a comprehension of the gist of the material carried by the progression of pieces of information: it requires an awareness of the connectivity of these propositions and how they are fashioned to achieve their effects.

Smart Learning Environments

In the Supplementary Material (Fig. 5 and Table 3), we describe the network of regions that is activated more during production than comprehension, the network of regions that is activated more during comprehension than production, and the network of regions involved in switching between processing modalities.

Cerebral Cortex

We parted with more smiles and nods than comprehension, but a conviction that dinner in the vaulted basement dining room would be good.

The New York Times - Travel

Recent evidence suggests that language processing delays associated with bilingualism are more robust in production than comprehension (e.g. Gollan et al., 2008, 2011; Runnqvist et al., 2011).

Bilingualism

Younger parents had more consistent comprehension than older ones.

BMC Medical Ethics

Moreover, PIT participants reported using significantly more imagery than PVT participants (χ(1) = 105.32, p < .01), and PVT participants reported using significantly more verbal comprehension than PIT participants (χ(1) = 28.39, p < .01).01

Behaviour Research and Therapy

Expert writing Tips

Best practice

Use "more than comprehension" when you want to emphasize that something is not just difficult to understand, but effectively beyond the capacity to grasp fully. This adds a sense of scale and depth to the limitation.

Common error

Avoid overusing "more than comprehension" in everyday situations where simpler phrases like "difficult to understand" or "complex" would suffice. Overuse can dilute the impact and make your writing sound hyperbolic.

Linguistic Context

The phrase "more than comprehension" functions as a qualifier, typically used to describe something that exceeds the limits of human understanding or knowledge. As Ludwig AI confirms, it is grammatically sound and serves to emphasize the extent to which something is difficult or impossible to grasp.

Expression frequency: Common

Frequent in

Science

35%

News & Media

35%

Formal & Business

30%

Less common in

Wiki

0%

Encyclopedias

0%

Social Media

0%

Ludwig's WRAP-UP

In summary, "more than comprehension" is a grammatically correct phrase used to describe something exceeding the limits of understanding. As Ludwig AI pointed out, it's usable in many contexts. It is particularly common in scientific, news, and formal writing, emphasizing complexity or vastness. While effective for adding emphasis, it should be used judiciously to avoid sounding hyperbolic. Related phrases include "beyond understanding" and "incomprehensible". When deciding to use this phrase, make sure you truly need the emphasis that the concept is truly beyond grasp, and not just complex.

More alternative expressions

Phrases that express similar concepts, ordered by semantic similarity:

beyond understanding

Indicates something is impossible to understand.

exceeding understanding

Focuses on surpassing the boundaries of understanding.

surpassing comprehension

Highlights that something goes beyond the ability to comprehend.

defying understanding

Emphasizes the inability to grasp something.

incomprehensible

Directly states that something cannot be understood.

beyond grasp

Indicates something is too difficult to understand or achieve.

transcending understanding

Suggests moving to a higher level of awareness beyond normal understanding.

exceeding the limits of understanding

Explicitly states that the boundaries of comprehension are surpassed.

going beyond comprehension

Indicates that something surpasses the range of what can be understood.

above understanding

Suggests a higher level of complexity that is not easily understood.

FAQs

How can I use "more than comprehension" in a sentence?

You can use "more than comprehension" to describe situations or concepts that are too complex or abstract to fully grasp. For example, "The scale of the universe is "more than comprehension" for most people".

What are some alternatives to "more than comprehension"?

Alternatives include "beyond understanding", "incomprehensible", or "beyond grasp". The choice depends on the specific nuance you want to convey.

When is it appropriate to use "more than comprehension"?

Use "more than comprehension" when you want to emphasize that something is not just difficult, but essentially impossible to understand fully. This phrase is suitable in contexts involving abstract concepts, vast scales, or extreme complexity.

What's the difference between "difficult to understand" and "more than comprehension"?

"Difficult to understand" suggests that something requires effort to comprehend, but is still potentially understandable. "More than comprehension" implies that something is fundamentally beyond the capacity for understanding, no matter how much effort is applied.