understanding

un·der·stand·ing  (ndr-stndng)

n.

1. The quality or condition of one who understands; comprehension.

2. The faculty by which one understands; intelligence. See Synonyms at reason.

3. Individual or specified judgment or outlook; opinion.

4.

a. A compact implicit between two or more people or groups.

b. The matter implicit in such a compact.

5. A reconciliation of differences; a state of agreement: They finally reached an understanding.

6. A disposition to appreciate or share the feelings and thoughts of others; sympathy.

adj.

1. Characterized by or having comprehension, good sense, or discernment.

2. Compassionate; sympathetic.

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under·standing·ly adv.

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understanding [ˌʌndəˈstændɪŋ]

n

1. the ability to learn, judge, make decisions, etc.; intelligence or sense

2. personal opinion or interpretation of a subject my understanding of your predicament

3. a mutual agreement or compact, esp an informal or private one

4. Chiefly Brit an unofficial engagement to be married

5. (Philosophy) Philosophy archaic the mind, esp the faculty of reason

on the understanding that with the condition that; providing

adj

1. sympathetic, tolerant, or wise towards people

2. possessing judgment and intelligence

understandingly  adv

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Understanding

See also knowledge; learning; perception; philosophy; thinking.

dysphasia

an impaired state of the power of speech or of the ability to comprehend language, caused by injury to the brain.

empathy

the power of entering into another’s personality and imaginatively experiencing his feelings. — empathie, adj.

epexegesis

an additional explanation; the use of more words to clarify further. — epexegetic, epexegetical, adj.

noology

the science of intuition and reason as phenomena of the mind. — noological, adj.

Thesaurus

Noun	1.	understanding - the cognitive condition of someone who understands; "he has virtually no understanding of social cause and effect" discernment, savvy, apprehension knowing - a clear and certain mental apprehension comprehension - an ability to understand the meaning or importance of something (or the knowledge acquired as a result); "how you can do that is beyond my comprehension"; "he was famous for his comprehension of American literature" self-knowledge - an understanding of yourself and your goals and abilities smattering - a slight or superficial understanding of a subject appreciation, grasp, hold - understanding of the nature or meaning or quality or magnitude of something; "he has a good grasp of accounting practices" grasping - understanding with difficulty; "the lecture was beyond his most strenuous graspings" hindsight - understanding the nature of an event after it has happened; "hindsight is always better than foresight" brainstorm, brainwave, insight - the clear (and often sudden) understanding of a complex situation realization, realisation, recognition - coming to understand something clearly and distinctly; "a growing realization of the risk involved"; "a sudden recognition of the problem he faced"; "increasing recognition that diabetes frequently coexists with other chronic diseases"
	2.	understanding - the statement (oral or written) of an exchange of promises; "they had an agreement that they would not interfere in each other's business"; "there was an understanding between management and the workers" agreement conspiracy, confederacy - a secret agreement between two or more people to perform an unlawful act fair-trade agreement - an agreement (illegal in the United States) between the manufacturer of a trademarked item of merchandise and its retail distributors to sell the item at a price at or above the price set by the manufacturer covenant - (Bible) an agreement between God and his people in which God makes certain promises and requires certain behavior from them in return unilateral contract - a one-sided agreement whereby you promise to do (or refrain from doing) something in return for a performance (not a promise) sales agreement, sale - an agreement (or contract) in which property is transferred from the seller (vendor) to the buyer (vendee) for a fixed price in money (paid or agreed to be paid by the buyer); "the salesman faxed the sales agreement to his home office" statement - a message that is stated or declared; a communication (oral or written) setting forth particulars or facts etc; "according to his statement he was in London on that day" term, condition - (usually plural) a statement of what is required as part of an agreement; "the contract set out the conditions of the lease"; "the terms of the treaty were generous" bargain, deal - an agreement between parties (usually arrived at after discussion) fixing obligations of each; "he made a bargain with the devil"; "he rose to prominence through a series of shady deals" working agreement - an informal agreement to work together gentlemen's agreement - a personal agreement based on honor and not legally binding written agreement - a legal document summarizing the agreement between parties submission - an agreement between parties in a dispute to abide by the decision of an arbiter entente, entente cordiale - a friendly understanding between political powers oral contract - an agreement that is not in writing and is not signed by the parties but is a real existing contract that lacks only the formal requirement of a memorandum to render it enforceable in litigation reservation - the written record or promise of an arrangement by which accommodations are secured in advance settlement - a conclusive resolution of a matter and disposition of it severance agreement - an agreement on the terms on which an employee will leave suicide pact - an agreement by two or more people to commit suicide together at a given place and time; "the two lovers killed themselves in a suicide pact"
	3.	understanding - an inclination to support or be loyal to or to agree with an opinion; "his sympathies were always with the underdog"; "I knew I could count on his understanding" sympathy inclination, tendency, disposition - an attitude of mind especially one that favors one alternative over others; "he had an inclination to give up too easily"; "a tendency to be too strict"
	4.	understanding - the capacity for rational thought or inference or discrimination; "we are told that man is endowed with reason and capable of distinguishing good from evil" intellect, reason faculty, mental faculty, module - one of the inherent cognitive or perceptual powers of the mind
Adj.	1.	understanding - characterized by understanding based on comprehension and discernment and empathy; "an understanding friend" perceptive - having the ability to perceive or understand; keen in discernment; "a perceptive eye"; "a perceptive observation"

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understanding

noun

1. perception, knowledge, grasp, sense, know-how (informal), intelligence, judgment, awareness, appreciation, insight, skill, penetration, mastery, comprehension, familiarity with, discernment, proficiency They have to have a basic understanding of computers.
perception ignorance, incomprehension, obtuseness

2. sympathy, consideration, sensitivity, love, concern, humanity, affection, warmth, tolerance, goodwill, compassion, kindness, empathy, tenderness, neighbourliness, humanitarianism, fellow feeling, considerateness, kind feeling, kind-heartedness We would like to thank them for their patience and understanding.
sympathy insensitivity

3. agreement, deal, promise, arrangement, accord, contract, bond, pledge, bargain, pact, compact, concord, gentlemen's agreement We had not set a date but there was an understanding between us.
agreement dispute, disagreement

4. belief, view, opinion, impression, interpretation, feeling, idea, conclusion, notion, conviction, judgment, assumption, point of view, perception, suspicion, viewpoint, hunch, way of thinking, estimation, supposition, sneaking suspicion, funny feeling It is my understanding that this has been going on for many years.

adjective

sympathetic, kind, compassionate, considerate, kindly, accepting, patient, sensitive, forgiving, discerning, tolerant, responsive, perceptive, forbearing Her boss, who was very understanding, gave her time off.
sympathetic insensitive, unsympathetic, inconsiderate, intolerant, unfeeling, strict

Quotations
"Shallow understanding from people of good will is more frustrating than absolute misunderstanding from people of ill will" [Martin Luther King Jr Letter from Birmingham Jail]
"The ill and unfit choice of words wonderfully obstructs the understanding" [Francis Bacon Novum Organum]
"I shall light a candle of understanding in thine heart, which shall not be put out" Bible: II Esdras

Translations

understanding [ˌʌndəˈstændɪŋ]

A. ADJ [person] → comprensivo; [smile] → de comprensión
to be understanding about sth → ser comprensivo(respecto a algo)
she was very understanding about it → fue muy comprensiva

B. N

1. (= faculty) → entendimiento m
it was beyond my understanding → iba más allá de mi entendimiento
the peace that passeth all understanding (Bible) → la paz que sobrepasa a todo entendimiento

2. [of sth] (= comprehension) → comprensión f; (= awareness) → conciencia f
we need to test children's understanding of facts → hay que poner a prueba la comprensión que los niños tienen de los hechos
our understanding of these processes is still poor → todavía no comprendemos muy bien estos procesos
a basic understanding of computers is essential → se necesitan unos conocimientos básicos de informática
to have a better or greater understanding of sth (= comprehend better) → entender or comprender mejor algo; (= be more aware of) → tener mayor or más conciencia de algo
to have little/no understanding of sth → saber muy poco/nada de algo
a shift in public understanding of the issues of crime and punishment → un cambio de la conciencia pública con respecto a la cuestión de los crímenes y los castigos

3. (= interpretation) → interpretación f
what's your understanding of the Prime Minister's statement? → ¿cómo interpreta usted la declaración del Primer Ministro? → ¿cuál es su interpretación de la declaración del Primer Ministro?
that's my understanding of the situation → esa es mi interpretación de la situación, así es como veo or interpreto la situación

4. (= sympathy) → comprensión f
thank you for your kindness and understanding → le agradezco su amabilidad y comprensión
to show no/little understanding of sth → no mostrar comprensión/mostrar muy poca comprensión hacia algo

5. (= belief) it was my understanding that ...; my understanding was that → tenía entendido que ..., según yo creía ...

6. (= agreement) → acuerdo m
to come to an understanding (with sb) → llegar a un acuerdo(con algn)
to have an understanding (with sb) → tener un acuerdo(con algn)
on the understanding that → a condición de que + subjun
on the understanding that he pays → a condición de que pague
to reach an understanding (with sb) → llegar a un acuerdo(con algn)

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understanding [ˌʌndə^rˈstændɪŋ]

adj → compréhensif/ive
She's very understanding → Elle est très compréhensive.
Fortunately, he had an understanding wife → Heureusement, sa femme était compréhensive.

n

(= grasp) [language, concept] → compréhension f
The job requires an understanding of Spanish → Le poste exige une bonne compréhension de l'espagnol.
to have an understanding of sth → avoir une bonne compréhension de qch
They have to have a basic understanding of computers → Ils doivent avoir une bonne compréhension de l'informatique de base.
to have little understanding of sth → méconnaître qch
to have a better understanding of sth → avoir une meilleure compréhension de qch

(= informal agreement) → arrangement m
There was an understanding between us → Nous avions un arrangement.
to come to an understanding with sb → parvenir à un arrangement avec qn
to come to an understanding with sb about sth → parvenir à un arrangement avec qn sur la question de qch
on the understanding that ... → étant bien entendu que ...

(= sympathy) → compréhension f
She showed great love and understanding → Elle fit preuve de beaucoup d'amour et de compréhension.

(= friendliness) → entente f
There was complete understanding between us → Il y avait une entente totale entre nous.
greater understanding between → une meilleure entente entre

(= interpretation) my understanding is that ... → à ce que je comprends ...
My understanding is there has been a thorough investigation → À ce que je comprends, il y a eu une enquête approfondie.
Our understanding is that they wanted to be in Washington → À ce que nous comprenons, ils voulaient être à Washington.

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understanding

adj → verständnisvoll; he asked me to be understanding → er bat mich um Verständnis

n

(= intelligence) → Auffassungsgabe f; (= knowledge) → Kenntnisse pl; (= comprehension, sympathy) → Verständnis nt; her understanding of children → ihr Verständnis nt → für Kinder; because of his complete lack of understanding for the problems → da ihm jedes Verständnis für die Probleme fehlte; my understanding of the situation is that … → ich verstehe die Situation so, dass …; his conduct is beyond human understanding → sein Verhalten ist absolut unbegreiflich; she’s a woman of great understanding → sie ist eine sehr verständnisvolle Frau; it was my understanding that … → ich nahm an or ich war der Meinung, dass …; he has a good understanding of the problem → er kennt sich mit dem Problem gut aus; to promote international understanding → um die internationale Verständigung zu fördern

(= agreement) → Abmachung f, → Vereinbarung f, → Verständigung f; to come to or reach an understanding with somebody → eine Abmachung or Vereinbarung mit jdm treffen; Susie and I have an understanding → Susie und ich haben unsere Abmachung; a degree of understanding → eine gewisse Übereinstimmung, ein gewisses Einvernehmen

(= assumption) → Voraussetzung f; on the understanding that … → unter der Voraussetzung, dass …; on this understanding → unter dieser Voraussetzung

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understanding [ˌʌndəˈstændɪŋ]

1. adj (person) → comprensivo/a; (smile) → indulgente

2. n

a. (intelligence) → comprensione f
his understanding of the situation is that ... → il modo in cui vede la situazione è che...
it was my understanding that ... → quello che ho capito io era che...+ sub

b. (sympathy) → simpatia, comprensione f

c. (agreement) → accordo, intesa
to come to an understanding with sb → giungere ad un accordo con qn
on the understanding that he pays → a patto che or a condizione che paghi lui

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understanding [ˌʌndəˈstændɪŋ]

1. adj (person) → comprensivo/a; (smile) → indulgente

2. n

a. (intelligence) → comprensione f
his understanding of the situation is that ... → il modo in cui vede la situazione è che...
it was my understanding that ... → quello che ho capito io era che...+ sub

b. (sympathy) → simpatia, comprensione f

c. (agreement) → accordo, intesa
to come to an understanding with sb → giungere ad un accordo con qn
on the understanding that he pays → a patto che or a condizione che paghi lui

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understanding → متفهم chápavý forstående verständnisvoll που δείχνει κατανόηση comprensivo ymmärtäväinen compréhensif uviđavan comprensivo 話がわかる 이해심 있는 begripvol forståelsesfull wyrozumiały compreensivo понимающий förstående ที่เข้าใจ อย่างเห็นอกเห็นใจ anlayış thông cảm 善解人意的