Com`pre*hen"sion (?), n. [L. comprehensio: cf. F. compr'ehension.] 1. The act of comprehending, containing, or comprising; inclusion.
In the Old Testament there is a close comprehension of the New; in the New, an open discovery of the Old.
Hooker.
2. That which is comrehended or inclosed within narrow limits; a summary; an epitome. [Obs.]
Though not a catalogue of fundamentals, yet . . . a comprehension of them.
Chillingworth.
3. The capacity of the mind to perceive and understand; the power, act, or process of grasping with the intellect; perception; understanding; as, a comprehension of abstract principles.
4. Logic The complement of attributes which make up the notion signified by a general term.
5. Rhet. A figure by which the name of a whole is put for a part, or that of a part for a whole, or a definite number for an indefinite.
© Webster 1913. | 
