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un·der·stand | \ ˌən-dər-ˈstand 
\
\understood\ ˌən-dər-ˈstu̇d \; understanding
\; understandingDefinition of understand
1a : to grasp the meaning of
understand Russian
b : to grasp the reasonableness of
his behavior is hard to understand
c : to have thorough or technical acquaintance with or expertness in the practice of
understand finance
d : to be thoroughly familiar with the character and propensities of
understands children
2 : to accept as a fact or truth or regard as plausible without utter certainty
we understand that he is returning from abroad
3 : to interpret in one of a number of possible ways
4 : to supply in thought as though expressed
"to be married" is commonly understood after the word engaged
1 : to have understanding : have the power of comprehension
2 : to achieve a grasp of the nature, significance, or explanation of something
3 : to believe or infer something to be the case
4 : to show a sympathetic or tolerant attitude toward something
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Other Words from understand
understandability \ ˌən-dər-ˌstan-də-ˈbi-lə-tē \ noun
\ noununderstandable \ ˌən-dər-ˈstan-də-bəl \ adjective
\ adjective
Examples of understand in a Sentence
I can't understand a word you're saying.
I don't understand these directions.
I want you to stay away from her. Do you understand?
I don't understand how this is supposed to work.
He doesn't really understand the situation.
You should read the book in order to understand more about the subject.
I can't understand why she would do such a thing.
She's beginning to understand what's going on.
You have to understand that I had no other choice.
At first we didn't get along, but I think we understand each other now.
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Recent Examples on the Web So while short online video seems more like the purview of a social network or YouTube, the fact is that TV and moviemakers already understand the qui in Quibi.
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Adam Rogers, Wired, "Hollywood Bets On a Future of Quick Clips and Tiny Screens," 8 Jan. 2020 Red wine pairs well with pretending to understand football.
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Kelly O'sullivan, Country Living, "30 Best Super Bowl Captions for Instagram That'll Score All the Likes on Game Day," 8 Jan. 2020 For all its vague terminology, activating your core is actually an important cue for anyone working out to understand.
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Amy Marturana Winderl, SELF, "What Does ‘Activate Your Core’ Even Mean?," 3 Jan. 2020 This is because research participants often don’t understand the complex scientific jargon used in consent documents or processes, especially where use of their samples or data in the future is concerned.
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Keymanthri Moodley, Quartz Africa, "Africa’s genetic material is still being misused," 23 Dec. 2019 Pirsig attempts to reconcile two opposing human desires: to pursue an aesthetic life devoted to metaphysical knowledge and the arts, and to understand the practical workings of technology and machines.
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Jay Bennett, Smithsonian, "The Cycle From ‘Zen, Art and Motorcycle Maintenance’ Comes to the Smithsonian," 21 Dec. 2019 Eventually, Uber Eats understood the blunder and went out of its way to think beyond Hindi.
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Karthik Srinivasan, Quartz India, "How brands are hurting themselves with pan-India “Hinglish” ads," 25 Dec. 2019 Most of them are poorly understood, including the giant freshwater stingray.
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Stefan Lovgren, National Geographic, "This giant stingray could be world's biggest freshwater fish," 24 Dec. 2019 Palpatine has sent a mysterious message across the galaxy, and the good guys are desperate to understand it.
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John Wenzel, The Know, "Review: “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker” sticks the landing, for the most part," 18 Dec. 2019
See MoreThese example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'understand.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for understand
understand
verbEnglish Language Learners Definition of understand
: to know the meaning of (something, such as the words that someone is saying or a language)
: to know how (something) works or happens
: to know how (someone) thinks, feels, or behaves
See the full definition for understand in the English Language Learners Dictionary
understand
verbun·der·stand | \ ˌən-dər-ˈstand \
\understood\ -ˈstu̇d \; understanding
Kids Definition of understand
1 : to get the meaning of
Do you understand my instructions?
2 : to know thoroughly
I understand Spanish. She understands the situation.
3 : to have reason to believe
I understand that they will come today.
4 : to take as meaning something not clearly made known
I understand the letter to be a refusal.
5 : to have a sympathetic attitude
Don't worry, I understand how you feel.
6 : to accept as settled
It is understood that I will pay.
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Comments on understand
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Time Traveler for understand
The first known use of understand was before the 12th century
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