Understand

• POS: Verb (usu participle), Verb (transitive)
• HYPHEN: un=der=stand

CIDE DICTIONARY

Understand, v. t. [OE. understanden, AS. understandan, literally, to stand under; cf. AS. forstandan to understand, G. verstehen. The development of sense is not clear. See Under, and Stand.].

•  To have just and adequate ideas of; to apprehended the meaning or intention of; to have knowledge of; to comprehend; to know; as, to understand a problem in Euclid; to understand a proposition or a declaration; the court understands the advocate or his argument; to understand the sacred oracles; to understand a nod or a wink.  [1913 Webster]

  "Speaketh [i. e., speak thou] so plain at this time, I you pray,
  That we may understande what ye say."  [1913 Webster]

  "I understand not what you mean by this."  [1913 Webster]

  "Understood not all was but a show."  [1913 Webster]

  "A tongue not understanded of the people."  [1913 Webster]
•  To be apprised, or have information, of; to learn; to be informed of; to hear; as, I understand that Congress has passed the bill.  [1913 Webster]
•  To recognize or hold as being or signifying; to suppose to mean; to interpret; to explain.  [1913 Webster]

  "The most learned interpreters understood the words of sin, and not of Abel."  [1913 Webster]
•  To mean without expressing; to imply tacitly; to take for granted; to assume.  [1913 Webster]

  "War, then, war,
  Open or understood, must be resolved."  [1913 Webster]
•  To stand under; to support.  Shak.  [1913 Webster]

To give one to understand, to cause one to know. -- To make one's self understood, to make one's meaning clear.

Understand, v. i. 

•  To have the use of the intellectual faculties; to be an intelligent being.  [1913 Webster]

  "Imparadised in you, in whom alone
  I understand, and grow, and see."  [1913 Webster]
•  To be informed; to have or receive knowledge.  [1913 Webster]

  "I came to Jerusalem, and understood of the evil that Eliashib did for Tobiah."  [1913 Webster]

OXFORD DICTIONARY

Understand, v. (past and past part. -stood)
1 tr. perceive the meaning of (words, a person, a language, etc.) (does not understand what you say; understood you perfectly; cannot understand French).
2 tr. perceive the significance or explanation or cause of (do not understand why he came; could not understand what the noise was about; do not understand the point of his remark).
3 tr. be sympathetically aware of the character or nature of, know how to deal with (quite understand your difficulty; cannot understand him at all; could never understand algebra).
4 tr. a (often foll. by that + clause) infer esp. from information received, take as implied, take for granted (I understand that it begins at noon; I understand him to be a distant relation; am I to understand that you refuse?). b (absol.) believe or assume from knowledge or inference (he is coming tomorrow, I understand).
5 tr. supply (a word) mentally (the verb may be either expressed or understood).
6 intr. have understanding (in general or in particular).

Idiom

understand each other
1 know each other's views or feelings.
2 be in agreement or collusion.

Derivative

understandable adj. understandably adv. understander n.

Etymology

OE understandan (as UNDER-, STAND)

THESAURUS

Understand

absorb, accept, agree, allow, appreciate, apprehend, arrange, assimilate, assume, be acquainted with, be afraid, be apprised of, be aware of, be cognizant of, be conscious of, be conversant with, be informed, be with one, believe, catch, catch on, catch on to, cognize, comprehend, conceit, conceive, conceptualize, conclude, conjecture, consider, construe, covenant, daresay, deduce, deem, define, describe, diagnose, dig, digest, discern, divine, dream, empathize with, expect, fancy, fathom, feel, follow, forgive, gather, get, get hold of, get it, get the drift, get the idea, get the picture, get wind of, grant, grasp, have, have information about, have it taped, have knowledge of, hear of, imagine, infer, interpret, ken, know, learn, let, let be, make out, master, opine, penetrate, perceive, perfume, possess, prefigure, prehend, presume, presuppose, presurmise, provisionally accept, read, read into, realize, reckon, recognize, repute, savvy, say, see, seize, seize the meaning, sense, suppose, surmise, suspect, sympathize with, take, take cognizance of, take for, take for granted, take in, take it, take it that, take to be, take to mean, think, tolerate, tumble to, twig, understand by, view, wit, wot, wot of

ROGET THESAURUS

Understand

Knowledge

VB know, ken, scan, wot, wot aware, be aware of, ween, weet, trow, have, possess, conceive, apprehend, comprehend, take, realize, understand, savvy, appreciate, fathom, make out, recognize, discern, perceive, see, get a sight-of, experience, know full well, have some knowledge of, possess some knowledge of, be au courant, have in one's head, have at one' fingers ends, know by heart, know by rote, be master of, connaitre le dessous des cartes, know what's what, see one's way, discover, come to one's knowledge.

Wisdom

VB be intelligent, have all one's wits about one, understand, catch an idea, take in an idea, take a joke, take a hint, see through, see at a glance, see with half an eye, see far into, see through a millstone, penetrate, discern, foresee, discriminate, know what's what, listen to reason.

Intelligibility

VB be intelligible, speak for itself, speak volumes, tell its own tale, lie on the surface, render intelligible, popularize, simplify, clear up, elucidate, understand, comprehend, take, take in, catch, grasp, follow, collect, master, make out, see with half an eye, see daylight, see one's way, enter into the ideas of, come to an understanding.

Implication

VB be latent, lurk, smolder, underlie, make no sign, escape observation, escape detection, escape recognition, lie hid, laugh in one's sleeve, keep back, involve, imply, understand, allude to, infer, leave an inference, entail, whisper, read between the lines.

Information

VB tell, inform, inform of, acquaint, acquaint with, impart, impart to, make acquaintance with, apprise, advise, enlighten, awaken, transmit, let fall, mention, express, intimate, represent, communicate, make known, publish, notify, signify, specify, convey the knowledge of, let one know, have one to know, give one to understand, give notice, set before, lay before, put before, point out, put into one's head, put one in possession of, instruct, direct the attention to, announce, annunciate, report, report progress, bringword, send word, leave word, write word, telegraph, telephone, wire, retail, render an account, give an account, state, let slip, blurt out, spill the beans, unburden oneself of, let off one's chest, disclose, show cause, explain, hint, given an inkling of, give a hint, drop a hint, throw out a hint, insinuate, allude to, make allusion to, glance at, tip the wink, suggest, prompt, give the cue, breathe, whisper, whisper in the ear, give a bit of one's mind, tell one plainly, tell once for all, speak volumes, undeceive, unbeguile, set right, correct, open the eyes of, disabuse, disillusion one of, be informed of, know, learn, get scent of, get wind of, gather from, awaken to, open one's eyes to, become alive, become awake to, hear, overhear, understand, come to one's ears, come to one's knowledge, reach one's ears.