think
θɪŋk
Think is not a meaning — it is a hand turning something over
The picture A hand inside your head turning a lump over and over, looking at every side. Know is the thing already settled in place; think is the thing still rolling in your hand.
Where the picture shows up in think
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one light turn, then out loud
I think the doctor is still with a patient.
aɪ θɪŋk ðə ˈdɑːktər ɪz stɪl wɪð ə ˈpeɪʃənt
The doctor is probably still in with a patient.
An unsure sentence gets one turn in the head before it is set out carefully.
Putting I think in front drops a flat claim down into a guess.
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a long, slow turn
Let me think about it and call you back.
let miː θɪŋk əˈbaʊt ɪt ənd kɔːl juː bæk
Give me a day and I will ring you back.
The phone goes down and the offer keeps rolling on an open palm overnight.
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the turning hand stops
I cannot think straight with all this noise.
aɪ ˈkænɑːt θɪŋk streɪt wɪð ɔːl ðɪs nɔɪz
My head will not work in this racket.
Noise jams the lump mid-roll and the whole thing stalls.
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a lump that was never in hand
I did not think of that.
aɪ dɪd nɑːt θɪŋk ʌv ðæt
That never crossed my mind — good point.
Among all the lumps being turned, that one is simply missing.
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turning someone else's lump
He never thinks about other people.
hiː ˈnevər θɪŋks əˈbaʊt ˈʌðər ˈpiːpəl
He has no consideration for anyone else.
The hand turns its own lumps forever and never picks up the one beside it.
All of it in one picture
Think is the hand that turns things over. One light turn and you hand out a guess; a long slow turn and you are weighing a decision; noise stops the hand and the head will not work. If the lump was never in your hand at all, you did not think of it, and a hand that only ever turns its own lumps belongs to someone who never thinks about other people.