Ruminate

v. i. [imp. & p. p. RUMINATED; p. pr. & vb. n. RUMINATING.] [Lat. ruminare, ruminatum, from rumen, q. v.; It. ruminare, Sp., Pg., & Pr. ruminar, Fr. ruminer.] 1. To chew the cud; to chew again what has been slightly chewed and swallowed. *Herds of cattle free To ruminate. Wordsworth.* 2. To muse; to meditate; to think again and again; to ponder. Apart from the hope of the gospel, who is there that ruminates on the felicity of heaven? L. Taylor.

v. t. 1. To chew over again. 2. To muse on; to meditate over and over again. Mad with desire, she ruminates her sin. Dryden.

a. [Fr. ruminé.] (Bot.) Having a hard albumen, as the nutmeg and some other seeds, penetrated by irregular channels filled with softer matter. Lindley.