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Definitions

understand

[uhn-der-stand] / ˌʌn dərˈstænd /




Usage

What are other ways to say understand? To understand is to be fully aware not only of the meaning of something but also of its implications: I could comprehend all he said, but did not understand that he was joking. To know is to be aware of something as a fact or truth: He knows the basic facts of the subject. I know that he agrees with me. To comprehend is to know something thoroughly and to perceive its relationships to certain other ideas, facts, etc. 

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

But I’ve also come to understand that millennials prefer to be more freewheeling, less regimented and “corporate,” than baby boomers.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 17, 2026

As Fielder clarifies the punchline, Holmes breaks down in tears across from him, frustrated that she can’t understand.

From Salon ● Oct. 17, 2026

To understand how methane absorption changes over time, the researchers examined an extensive collection of soil gas measurements gathered through the FVA's long-running monitoring program.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 17, 2026

Now, we can understand the people who did achieve their goal, versus those who did not.

From Slate ● Oct. 17, 2026

“Uncle Max,” my dad said finally, giving a look I didn’t understand.

From "Legendary Frybread Drive-In" by Cynthia Leitich Smith

No one understands their audience better than she does, knowing comedy relies as much on observation as on good, old-fashioned slapstick.

From Salon ● Oct. 16, 2026

Although he is enjoying his posting, Legrand understands why some young educators leave the profession.

From Barron's ● Oct. 16, 2026

Perhaps because she understands that the internet is not real life, and that her message is resonating with a silent majority.

From Slate ● Oct. 15, 2026

BBC Sport understands the club's fertility fund is worth £189,000, shared between 27 players - equivalent to £7,000 each.

From BBC ● Oct. 13, 2026

Kat is her best friend, so she understands.

From "A Heart in a Body in the World" by Deb Caletti

It’s one of the great power ballads of the last 25 years, with a chorus as cathartic as any in modern pop; Cyrus, the showbiz lifer, surely understood the payoff she was building toward.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 17, 2026

The Dodgers understood that this outcome was a possibility when the season began.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2026

“Almost no one understood the key points,” Hibbs said.

From Slate ● Oct. 16, 2026

This does not necessarily mean that the anesthetized patients consciously understood the stories being played to them.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 15, 2026

Sometimes she stood up for me, and I understood why.

From "Rump: The (Fairly) True Story of Rumpelstilskin" by Liesl Shurtliff

She added she understood people's concerns around the freshness of the food but her "understanding is that the meals are actually frozen rather than artificially preserved".

From BBC ● Oct. 17, 2026

Rather, they indicate that understanding the biological changes occurring inside aging muscles may be necessary to develop more effective strategies for preventing muscle decline.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 16, 2026

We’ll soon get a better understanding of those injuries, and whether rest, rehabilitation and/or surgery might be recommended for each one.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 16, 2026

Some problems are too complex for easy understanding or remedy, but this isn’t one of them.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2026

Beginning with the 2014 expedition, DNA began to play an important role in understanding the origins of artifacts other than human remains.

From "Shipwrecked!" by Martin W. Sandler


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