verb
ADVERB
▪ clearly , well
▪ completely , fully , perfectly , quite , thoroughly , totally , truly
▪
I fully ~ the reason for your decision.
▪ better
▪
These categories help us to better ~ our readers.
▪ not really , not truly
▪
Her actions wounded him in a way he did not really ~.
▪ not necessarily
▪
They won't necessarily ~ the pros and cons of the matter.
▪ not entirely , partially
▪
a complex topic which I only partially ~
▪ barely , hardly
▪
I could barely ~ a word of his story.
▪ adequately
▪ accurately , correctly , precisely , properly , rightly
▪
If I've understood you correctly …
▪ easily , readily
▪
The reasons for this decision are not easily understood.
▪ immediately , instantly , quickly , suddenly
▪
The girl ~s immediately and promises to be more careful.
▪ finally
▪
I finally understood what she meant.
▪ instinctively , intuitively
▪
She intuitively understood his need to be alone.
VERB + UNDERSTAND
▪ be able to , can
▪
I can't ~ what all the fuss is about.
▪ be unable to , fail to
▪ attempt to , hope to , seek to , strive to , try to
▪
Only specialists can hope to ~ them.
▪ struggle to
▪
a woman struggling to ~ an incomprehensible situation
▪ help (to) , help sb (to)
▪ begin to , start to
▪ come to , learn to
▪
We came to ~ why certain things happened in certain ways.
▪
She soon learnt to ~ English.
▪ appear to , seem to
▪ claim to
▪
I don't claim to ~ it.
▪ be easy to , be simple to
▪ be difficult to , be hard to
▪
It is difficult to ~ why he reacted in that way.
PREPOSITION
▪ about
▪
We ~ little about this disease.
▪ as
▪
These beliefs are best understood as a form of escapism.
PHRASES
▪ be commonly understood , be generally understood , be popularly understood
▪
What is generally understood by ‘democracy’?
▪ be imperfectly understood , be incompletely understood , be poorly understood
▪
The effects of these chemicals on the body are still poorly understood.
▪ be universally understood , be widely understood
Understand is used with these nouns as the object: ↑ basics , ↑ business , ↑ cause , ↑ complexity , ↑ concept , ↑ concern , ↑ culture , ↑ danger , ↑ difference , ↑ distinction , ↑ enormity , ↑ essence , ↑ extent , ↑ feeling , ↑ frustration , ↑ fundamentals , ↑ gist , ↑ gravity , ↑ grief , ↑ impact , ↑ implication , ↑ importance , ↑ influence , ↑ instruction , ↑ intricacy , ↑ issue , ↑ joke , ↑ language , ↑ limitation , ↑ logic , ↑ magnitude , ↑ meaning , ↑ mind , ↑ motivation , ↑ motive , ↑ mystery , ↑ nature , ↑ necessity , ↑ need , ↑ nuance , ↑ phenomenon , ↑ plight , ↑ point , ↑ point of view , ↑ politics , ↑ predicament , ↑ problem , ↑ reality , ↑ reason , ↑ reasoning , ↑ reference , ↑ relationship , ↑ reluctance , ↑ risk , ↑ role , ↑ rule , ↑ science , ↑ sentiment , ↑ seriousness , ↑ significance , ↑ situation , ↑ subtlety , ↑ symbol , ↑ symbolism , ↑ system , ↑ technicality , ↑ terminology , ↑ text , ↑ value , ↑ viewpoint , ↑ word , ↑ workings