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# understand

«understand» in Mova's judaism dictionary: **to know what something means or how it works** — its meaning for a pupil, its sense in the lessons and examples, with 5 sentences of Mova's corpora that use it.

### part of speech

verb (understand, understands, understood, understanding)

### meaning for a pupil

1) To understand is to know what something means or how it works. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/judaism/U/understand/#m1)

2) To understand someone is to know how they feel or why they act as they do. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/judaism/U/understand/#m2)

3) «I understand that …» can mean «I have heard that …». [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/judaism/U/understand/#m3)

### sense in the lessons

In the Tanakh and Jewish tradition: In the Torah "understand" often means to grasp with the mind and to act wisely. Interpretation: Tradition prizes understanding (binah) as a gift of God, and Babel's confusion is that people could no longer understand each other. In the primary lessons: In school, understanding is more than remembering: you understand a maths method when you can explain why it works. Teachers ask «Do you understand?» — it is fine to say no and ask again. In getting along with others, understanding feelings helps friendships. Phrases: «make yourself understood», «understand each other», «understanding» (kind and forgiving).

### examples

- If they were wise, they would understand this, they would discern their latter end. (Torah DEU.32.29, JPS 1917) [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/judaism/U/understand/#x1)
- For they are a nation void of counsel, and there is no understanding in them. (Torah DEU.32.28, JPS 1917) [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/judaism/U/understand/#x2)
- Come, let us go down, and there confound their language, that they may not understand one another's speech.' (Torah GEN.11.7, JPS 1917) [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/judaism/U/understand/#x3)
- Declare, if thou hast the understanding. (Writings JOB.38.4, JPS 1917) [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/judaism/U/understand/#x4)
- And where is the place of understanding? (Writings JOB.28.12, JPS 1917) [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/judaism/U/understand/#x5)
- What understandest thou, which is not in us? (Writings JOB.15.9, JPS 1917) [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/judaism/U/understand/#x6)
- Do you understand the question? [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/judaism/U/understand/#x7)
- I don't understand this word. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/judaism/U/understand/#x8)
- Now I understand how magnets work. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/judaism/U/understand/#x9)
- My mum understands how I feel. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/judaism/U/understand/#x10)
- Read it again until you understand it. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/judaism/U/understand/#x11)
- She understood the joke at last. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/judaism/U/understand/#x12)
- We understand each other without words. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/judaism/U/understand/#x13)
- Can you make yourself understood in French? [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/judaism/U/understand/#x14)
- She did not understand even now. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/judaism/U/understand/#x15)

### note

Irregular: understand, understood, understood. Not usually used in -ing form for this meaning: say «I understand», not «I am understanding». «Misunderstand» means understand wrongly. «Understanding» as an adjective means kind and patient.

### In the corpora

- [Come, let us go down, and there confound their language, that they may not understand one another's speech.'](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/torah/jps/GEN.285/)
- [And they knew not that Joseph understood them; for the interpreter was between them.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/torah/jps/GEN.1384/)
- [If they were wise, they would understand this, they would discern their latter end.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/torah/jps/DEU.914/)
- [David therefore sent out spies, and understood that Saul was come of a certainty.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/neviim/jps/1SA.771/)
- [So all the people and all Israel understood that day that it was not of the king to slay Abner the son of Ner.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/neviim/jps/2SA.109/)

### Trees and pragmatics

[Every meaning and example of «understand» parsed by Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/judaism/U/understand/), each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.